Katelyn Nicole Davis: A Livestreamed Suicide
A selfie from Katelyn Nicole Davis' Instagram account.
Katelyn Nicole Davis was a 12 year old girl who tragically took her own life while livestreaming on Youtube. The footage went viral and police were unable to get it removed from the internet.
Who was Katelyn Nicole Davis
Katelyn Nicole Davis in a happier moment.
Katelyn Nicole Davis was a 12 year old girl from Cedartown, Georgia. Like many kids her age she enjoyed uploading videos to Youtube showing her singing, joking around and talking about her life. She also enjoyed experimenting with makeup and posting selfies on Instagram.
She confided in viewers on Youtube that she was being abused by her step father and neglected by her father. She claimed in one video that her step father had told her that she should hang herself because she is worthless. She told of being bullied at school and being a victim of catfishing.
Her videos often showed her taking care of her siblings and warning them not to wake up their mom. Katelyn’s mom is seen yelling at her in one video telling her she’s going to “whip her ass.”
Katelyn was a kind, caring soul who would often reach out to other teens online, asking them to share their similar experiences with her. She also urged people to be kinder to each other and not to bully others.
The Suicide of Katelyn Nicole Davis
On the 30th December 2016, Katelyn Nicole Davis started a live video on Youtube. At the beginning of the video Katelyn talks about being sexually abused by a family member. She is seen in her back yard hanging a rope from a tall tree branch.
With a palpable sadness Katelyn says “I’m sorry that I’m not pretty enough. I’m sorry for everything, I’m really, truly sorry. But I can’t do this.”
Katelyn then climbs on top of a bucket and ties the rope around her neck. She says goodbye to her friends and family then kicks the bucket out from under her.
The footage continues for another 20 minutes, showing Katelyn’s lifeless body hanging from the tree by her neck. At the end of the video a woman is heard screaming her name offscreen.
Police were called and Katelyn was rushed to Polk Medical Centre’s emergency unit where she was pronounced dead.
The Video of Katelyn Nicole Davis’ Suicide
The public expressed outrage over the online video of Katelyn Nicole Davis’ suicide.
Before Katelyn could even be buried the video of her suicide went viral across social media. Police asked people who had uploaded it to take it down, but as they had no legal authority to force them, many videos stayed up.
There was outrage especially in Katelyn’s community of Cedartown, Georgia about the video remaining online. Parents were concerned the video might trigger other youth to do the same thing.
In spite of all this outrage the video is still available to watch online today in some of the shadier corners of the internet.
Rest in Peace Katelyn.
If you were interested in this story you might also be interested in the disappearance of Lars Mittank or Brian Shaffer.
