Fourteen-year-old Jamie Isaacs was the star witness Tuesday afternoon in an effort to pass a new law on cyber-bullying.
The Long Island teen said she's been bullied in school since the second grade. Back then, children hit her with book bags and poked her with sharpened pencils. As the years went on, the bullying escalated, and extended to the Internet on sites like FormSpringMe.com.
Isaacs, of Lake Grove, is supporting a proposed law in Suffolk County that would force schools to act on reports of repeated cyber-bullying. If passed, school administrators who fail to act could face a misdemeanor charge, a $1,000 fine and a up to a year in jail.
Suffolk County legislator Jon Cooper is sponsoring the measure, and hoping it will help move similar efforts on the state and federal level.
At the first public hearing today on the legislation, Jamie stated "I'm alive while other kids are dead because of the effects bullying had on them."
Jamie's father, Ron Isaacs told the legislators "with instant messages, e-mails, text messages, it's become extremely easy for kids to come together and bully another student."
Cooper said there will be more public hearings over the next two to three months. The bill will then go to a legislative committee before a final vote can take place.
