A grieving mother is taking on social media giants Snapchat and Meta, fearing her 14-year-old son may have taken his own life as a result of an ‘online challenge’ gone wrong. Ellen Roome is campaigning to gain access to Jools Sweeney’s accounts, believing they hold the key to understanding why he ended his life.
Jools was discovered dead in his bedroom in April 2022. An inquest decided he took his own life, but a coroner could not confirm if he had been suicidal. Ms Roome said he participated in a “lot of online challenges” and she feared he had lost his life to a ‘dark and dangerous’ one.
She has been pressing for “Jools’ Law”, which would allow parents to access their children’s social media accounts after their death. A petition, which amassed 126,000 signatures, was debated in Parliament on Monday, January 13.
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Ms Roome said having access to his social media could provide the evidence to explain his death. She said her world ‘collapsed’ when she discovered her son unconscious in his bedroom.
Without complete access to his social media data, the 48-year-old mum, from Cheltenham, said she was in the dark about what happened to her son on the day of his death. Ms Roome said: “He was massive on social media. He did a lot of online challenges.
“Harmless challenges I thought were just fun and I wasn’t aware of some dangerous dark challenges that are on social media. If we had access to it [data] we would have had answers to why a 14-year-old decided to end his life.
“It is horrific – to lose a child and not understand why he decided to end his life is terrible. He was a happy child, always laughing, always smiling with plenty of friends. More than 500 people went to his funeral – there wasn’t anybody in his life that had concerns about him.
“When it happened it was completely out of the blue. I had spoken to him an hour-and-a-half before it happened.”
Jools Sweeney’s mum is searching for information about his tragic death.
(Image: No credit)
Ms Roome said she had spent thousands of pounds in legal fees trying to retrieve data from Jools’ accounts but to no avail. She met TikTok representatives and made email contact with Meta and Snapchat but said she was told no information would be provided without a court order.
Asked how the companies reacted to her data requests, she stated: “Awfully. They don’t seem to care. TikTok refused to give any access without a court order. Meta released some things but no messages or browsing data.
“Snapchat wouldn’t tell me if they can release deleted messages and wouldn’t give me anything further without a court order.”
TikTok said it no longer had watch or search history for Jools, because the law required companies to delete people’s personal data unless it was needed for running a business. The company said there were exceptions, such as if police request for data to be preserved, but it said it was not contacted by officers until 2024 when the information was no longer available.
It said it was not trying to prevent Ms Roome from getting answers.
Ellen Roome with her son Josh.
(Image: No credit)
Snapchat said it enabled Ms Roome to view existing messages on her son’s account. But it said deleted messages were wiped from the company’s servers and rendered inaccessible, although Snapchat said it was ready to help the authorities with any requests it could.
Ms Roome said: “It’s never going to bring my son again so it’s never going to make me happy. I have spent a lot of money – it is expensive and I’m just a normal person who desperately wants answers to why my child isn’t here.”
Samaritans (116 123) samaritans.org operates a 24-hour service available every day of the year. If you prefer to write down how you’re feeling, or if you’re worried about being overheard on the phone, you can email Samaritans at jo@samaritans.org , write to Freepost RSRB-KKBY-CYJK, PO Box 9090, STIRLING, FK8 2SA and visit www.samaritans.org/branches to find your nearest branch.
Childline (0800 1111) runs a helpline for children and young people in the UK. Calls are free and the number won’t show up on your phone bill. PAPYRUS (0800 068 41 41) is a voluntary organisation supporting teenagers and young adults who are feeling suicidal.
Other depression charities
Mind is a mental health charity that offers information, support and resources for those that are struggling. They also offer help for young people and those supporting someone in their life with mental health struggles. Call Mind info line on 0300 123 3393.
Shout 85258 is a free, confidential, anonymous mental health text support service. Texting the word ‘SHOUT’ to 85258 will start a conversation with a trained Shout volunteer, who will text you back and forth.
Students Against Depression is a website for students who are depressed, have a low mood or are having suicidal thoughts. Bullying UK is a website for both children and adults affected by bullying studentsagainstdepression.org
There are other depression charities and support you can access. If you are seriously concerned, please call 999.
Of the Parliamentary debate, she said: “I couldn’t have asked for a better result – it was amazing. It was very emotional. Sitting with the bereaved parents that all want answers and every single MP agreed with my petition and afterwards the minister spoke to me to hopefully amend the data bill to include my provisions requested to provide us access to social media.”
Ms Roome has also established a crowdfunding campaign to help with legal expenses. “I am determined to continue this fight for transparency and safety in the digital space so no other family has to endure the pain we have suffered,” she said.
Meta was contacted for a statement.
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