Never joke about suicide, nor urge another to kill themselves, even as a joke. A few years ago a new member of a forum I frequented made a thread stating that he was going to kill himself over his webcam. He gave us the address to his feed and said he'd do it in a few hours. That thread had hundreds of posts in a matter of 45 minutes or so. I and a few others urged the user not to do it, I PM'd him multiple times and talked to him, trying to help him with his problems.

Others weren't so supportive. They mocked him, told him to hurry up and do it, and so on, just like these people did to Kevin. In the end, it was revealed to be a hoax and the user made fun of us for believing it. I'd rather be supportive and the victim of a hoax then joke about "getting on with it", and it turns out to be real.

Mike T., Australia, NSW

I think that is sad that other people can egg another human bein on to actully commit suicide online when they know that the person is live on there web cam!! Especially when there felling so low and not in the right frame of mind, i know because i have been there myself and i had a brother who hung himself. I hope them people in question get caught and one day i hope they suffer the same consecquence., see how they feel,only they wouldnt have the guts to end there life,it takes a lot of nerve to go through with it.people say that a person who ends there life is a coward, well there wrong its a brave thing to carry through, and i know that kevin is at peace now with the angels in heaven.may you rest in peace now kevin, no more pain or suffering,its over now ure free xoxooxox I hope that the people who enticed kevin to go through with this, suffer for the rest of there lives, they dont have a heart or a consious. nite nite kevin R.I.P. LOVE KAT XOXOOXOXOXOXOXOXOOX

KATHERINE FARR, belfast, n.ireland

Well, actually, I'm borderline-suicidal myself at times. I've never been close enough to be in any real danger, and I doubt I will be. But I've thought about it a number of times. And I have to agree with those saying that it probably would have happened anyways. Hindsight is 20/20, but at the time, it's not that unreasonable to assume someone is joking around if, as has been said, he had a history of playing jokes. Anyways, suicide is something that everyone is so desperate to stay away from that they often trick themselves into thinking that it can't happen, so it MUST be a joke. Sad, yes, but I think no one at all is to blame in this. I think blame shouldn't be an issue, and that every single person involved deserves complete sympathy and support. Make the guilt worse and you may end up pushing someone else that far. Not that it necessarily WILL happen, just that it's something to remember, just in case.

Anne, Durham, NC

Rest in peace, god be with you....

Ryan green, Kidderminster,

I suppose all one can say now is a prayer for the man's soul, bless him, he was unhappy. It is not right to stand in judgement of those who are going through a tough time and people in chat rooms can get more than carried away - Chat rooms should be banned to be honest; if they're not encouraging people to take their lives; they are duping young children into all sorts..

I hope the gentleman has now found peace and is reunited with his loved ones..

A little respect is all that is needed really and there's not enough in the world and when one asks for it, they are laughed at & it's those people who are responsible...

From Ireland, Templeogue, Dublin, IRELAND

Why did'nt the Moderators react earlier?

Remi Omoyeni, London, uk

Why did'nt Moderators get on the case earlier?

Remi Omoyeni, London, uk

I know this will sound rude but if "Kevin was a loving father and family man" who was "extremely considerate and kind" as described by his former wife -why did she leave him (or he leave her)?

Ti-Ti, London,

This is a vulgar event as pretty much was a longtime coming. Insult rooms are exactly that and have been running for many years on paltalk. There have been many people fake suicides in the insult rooms and all have been fake and for attention or "drama". The point of the rooms is to insult or wind somebody up to get a reaction or crate drama. Nothing like this has ever happened before in the 10 years these rooms have been going on so nobody really expected this to occur. Even though reports say people egged him on, police found his sound was down so he couldt hear people on microphone telling him to do it and he had already made the plans to do it regardless. The interesting thing is he had only just made the new nick name to perform the act, many users knew him under a diff guise. Many users have also questioned why he did this on paltalk as most know this is a huge drama for the rooms and he also would of known the nororiety he would of gained by doing it there... sad indeed!

steve, Sydney, nsw

To quote Patty, Geraldton "what this poor gentleman went through was really sad"....ummm Patty, your intentions are noble but it's clear you have never worked closely with people who have psychiatric disorders. Any person who commits suicide is clearly lacking in coping skills and insight. Had this man been a little more rational he would have thought twice about his actions and not left behind a devasted family. Your hope of "manslaughter" charges is a little bit too politically correct I suspect, and you really should substitute the word "karma" for "revenge" as it's clearly what you are thinking. As for the people in the chat room, I'm sure there were a few sad individuals who may have "egged" him on, but if he was that susceptible to persuasion as you suggest, then why didn't he follow the more positive, helpful comments (begging him to stop) in the chat room? Sadly, the poor man had made his mind up, as these things are rarely done spur of the moment...

John Von Ahlen, Melbourne, Australia

I knew this guy, and I used to talk to him on Paltalk a lot, he was a great guy. The night it happened no one thought it was real, Kevin was a great prankster, and he used to wind us up all the time, who would have thought he was actually going to do that, I never thought he would. I wasn't a user who egged him on, but the ones who did didn't do it to hurt him, our chatroom is known for pranks. No one in their right minds thought that any of this was real. And it's not like the whole room was telling him to do it, it was a few people, and I hate how everyone is saying that all of the users were saying things to him when a few people who thought he was joking around messed with him, and I'm sure that they live with the deepest regret now, but this was premeditated. Kev knew what he was going to do before he did it. Yes things should have been done differently, but I'm sure if no one would have messed with him he would have done it anyway. I'm sorry to have lost my friend. :(

Veruca, Lewiston, USA Maine

Charged with manslaughter?!?! Are you for real?! If someone is unstable enough to completely abolish pure human instinct of breathing, then I'm sure that the comments of a dozen idiots is what he needed to push him over the edge.

Don't get me wrong, this is a very sad case and the people who encouraged him are sick, twisted individuals with absolutely no moral standards. But clearly, the man was mentally ill and would have taken the same actions regardless.

Kayleigh, Sydney, Australia

Wouldnt this constitute 'Assisted Suicide' leaving the other chat room users possibly facing criminal charges???

Peter Scarlett, Whitley Bay,

The environment of a chat-room is of such a nature that I believe it would be immature to charge those 'egging him on' with manslaughter, or anything else for that matter. On the internet, you honestly have no idea if some one is joking around or serious about something; and even if they are serious, there's something wrong with a man who will hang himself because an impartial username suggests him to commit suicide.
It's obvious that the man did not kill himself because he was being 'egged on.' He had intentions before entering the chat, according to the newsreports. And other people did try to stop him, to no avail. The people who 'egged' him on might not have been helping the situation, granted, and they may have a abnormal sense of humor, but nevertheless you cannot derail the blame from the intentions of the victim onto the people who encouraged him after he had made up his mind. After the fact it's tempting to pin it on someone, but the blame lies squarely on the deceased.

Tom, Los Angeles, California, United States

It is tragic as well as horrific, there is also a thing called "karma" and what goes around comes around ten fold to those that encourage him I just hope it's not in similar circumstances that karma comes around to get them for what they did, I hope it is in the form of manslaughter charges as what this poor gentleman went through was really sad. I can only give my hearfelt sympathy to his family and most of all his children, I have children myself and would never hope for them to go through and feel what those babies are going through now.

Patty, geraldton, wa

My sympathy goes out to Kevins family. Having said that.
"Chat rooms don't kill people, People Kill People" Don't blame paltalk for the decision made by its member. Don't blame the other members for not doing what was 'Right" when no one knew if it was legit or a joke or what at the time. Don't shoot the messenger as it were.
I really do feel for the family of Kevin but if he was going to kill himself, nothing and I mean NOTHING would have stopped that. Suicides on a mission will succeed.

Rose, Melbourne, Australia

The environment of a chat-room is of such a nature that I believe it would be immature to charge those 'egging him on' with manslaughter, or anything else for that matter. On the internet, you honestly have no idea if some one is joking around or serious about something; and even if they are serious, there's something wrong with a man who will hang himself because an impartial username suggests him to commit suicide.
It's obvious that the man did not kill himself because he was being 'egged on.' He had intentions before entering the chat, according to the newsreports. And other people did try to stop him, to no avail. The people who 'egged' him on might not have been helping the situation, granted, and they may have a abnormal sense of humor, but nevertheless you cannot derail the blame from the intentions of the victim onto the people who encouraged him after he had made up his mind. After the fact it's tempting to pin it on someone, but the blame lies squarely on the deceased.

Tom, Los Angeles, California, United States

I also believe the people who egged him on should be charged with crime. How utterly disgusting that people would encourage someone who is in mental and emotional pain to take their own life, rather than seeking professional help. I pray that God is more merciful with them than they were with this poor, distraught men.

Shelle, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA

Shocked that people egged him on this was someones son and someones father clearly a desperate call for help that went to far. My thought and prayers are with his family and children.

Helen, Deryshire, uk

Manslaughter charges, should be brought upon those who encouraged this poor unstable man.

Joshua Grace, Shandon, USA

This is totally despicable. Surely someone would have realized that this was not a joke; I believe those who encouraged him actually did not believe that he would go ahead and do the deed. Those who egged the poor man on should be deeply ashamed of themselves. Do we have such a low regard for human life that makes people encourage others to hurt themselves? I feel empathy for the poor man; a loss of a parent is not something that one gets over in a fortnight; people should have been encouraging him to seek counseling instead of giving horrible advice.

Meredith Meeker, Norcross, georgia, united states

Dreadful state of affairs. I can only echo the previous comments. the world urgently needs someone with positive influence to take this current state of moral decay into hand, the man in the street can make little or no difference directly.
My sympathy to Kevins family

Stephen Wood, York, uk

curse of loneleness and frastration now spread all over world because lack of calture and patience,and also to look out towards life, life is nothing but art of living.

satish chaphekar, mumbai, india

Unfortunately this is yet another way the internet can demonise people and trick them into seeing and doing things that they would not necessary do otherwise.
It seems to draw with the sites run for anorexia, where users post pictures and let others comment on what they see.
Chat rooms may be set up for good purposes, but like most things, people are unpredictable, and while most people in the world are generally sensible, there are a select few who seem to find enjoyment in making others around them miserable.

Amanda Payne, Leeds,

Tragic and a sign of today's sick society who do not care about others only themselves and how much materialistic wealth they can accumulate.
My heart goes out to this man and the family he has left behind.

Barry, London,