Molly Russell inquest hears child psychiatrist ‘did not sleep well’ after viewing online content seen by 14-year-old | UK News
A child psychologist told Molly Russell to search for self-harm material the teenager had seen on social media before her death that left him “unable to sleep well for several weeks”.
Dr Navin Venugopal said the “very disturbing, distressing” content to which Molly was engaged would “definitely affect her and make her feel more desperate”, as he gave evidence in Court North London investigation.
Molly, from Harrow in north-west London, was 14 when she ended her life in November 2017, prompting her family to campaign for better internet safety.
She was found dead in her bedroom after viewing online content related to anxiety, depression and self-harm.
Asking witnesses about the material’s impact on Molly, coroner Andrew Walker said the material appeared “romantic, seductive and self-harming – taking it away from reality and making it seems almost unreal.”
“Have you seen the document, do you think the document that Molly watched had any impact on her state of mind?” he asked the psychiatrist.
Dr Venugopal replied: “I suppose I’ll start, I’ll talk about the material’s impact on my state of mind.
“I had to see it for a short period of time and it was very disturbing, distressing.
“There were periods where I couldn’t sleep well for a few weeks so nostalgic that the child saw this over a period of months, I can only say that he was (affected) – especially remembering that I was depressed. I was 14 years old.”
Instagram account using Molly’s picture has been deleted
Dr Venugopal told the inquest he saw no “positive benefit” to the material viewed by the teenager before her death.
On Tuesday, proceedings were momentarily halted when family attorney Oliver Sanders KC told the court that a “pretty nasty” Instagram account had been set up using an image of Mr. Molly as its profile picture.
Spokesperson for Meta said in a statement that the account was “removed from Instagram for violating our policies”.
Mr. Sanders showed Dr. Venugopal through some of the videos seen by Molly on Instagramfollowed by a note written on the girl’s phone two days after watching a clip using “identical language”.
‘Seeing these things can have an impact’
Dr Venugopal told the court: “If they have that mindset and are seeing things like that, it could have an impact.”
The head of health and well-being at Instagram’s parent company Meta and the head of community action at Pinterest have both apologized for the content Molly viewed.
Meta CEO Elizabeth Lagone said she believes posts that the Russell family say “encourages” suicide are safe for teens to view.
Pinterest’s Judson Hoffman told the investigation the site was “unsafe” when Molly used it.
The investigation, which is expected to last up to two weeks, is still ongoing.
Anyone who feels emotional distress or wants to commit suicide can call The Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email [email protected]. Alternatively, mail can be sent to: Freepost SAMARITANS LETTERS.
