Sunday, April 13, 2008

Dr. Phil bails out jailed teen

I know that you probably heard about the Florida teen who was lead to a house where she was beaten by six girls. If you don't already know the story, the victim was supposedly saying rude things on myspace to the six girls. And as a punishment, these girls and two boys, decided to lure the victim to one of the girl's houses. There, they would beat her. The whole thing was taped and the footage totals to about 40 or more minutes. This whole thing was taped because the girls wanted a viral video on YouTube. The two boys involved stood outside the house and made sure nobody came near. They also taped some of the footage. The victim was beaten and went unconcious. After the whole ordeal, she went to the hospital and has problems seeing with her left eye and hearing with her left ear. This is because one girl threw the victim's head into the wall. The eight kids who were involved with the beating and taping were jailed.
Well, five of the kids got bailed out by family. One still remains in jail. And one kid has been bailed out by Dr. Phil, which this is all about.
Employees of the "Dr. Phil" television show posted bail for a central Florida teenager jailed for taking part in a videotaped beating of another teen, a spokeswoman for the show's host confirmed Saturday.
Staff members of the talk show helped Mercades Nichols - one of eight teens facing charges in the case - post bond this weekend, "Dr. Phil" McGraw's spokeswoman Terri Corigliano said in an e-mail.
This girl lived in the house where the teen was beaten.
"We have helped guests and potential guests in the past when they need financial assistance to come on the show - assisting with clothing allowance, lost wages, accommodations, travel and necessities," Corigliano wrote. "In this case, certain staff members went beyond our guidelines (re the bail being paid).
"These staff members have been spoken to and our policies reiterated. In addition, we have decided not to go forward with the story as our guidelines have been compromised."
The show's producers were in the process of booking guests for a program about the case, Corigliano wrote.
Only two of the teens remained jailed late Saturday night, Polk County Sheriff's Office spokesman Scott Wilder said.
The teens, whose ages range from 14 to 18, face kidnapping and misdemeanor battery charges. Three also face a felony charge of witness tampering. The state attorney's office says all will be tried as adults.
They are accused of participating in a violent beating of another teenager, which was videotaped and has now been viewed widely on national television and the Internet.
A judge on Friday set bails ranging from $30,000 to $37,000 for the teenagers.
McGraw drew criticism earlier this year when he confronted troubled pop star Britney Spears at the UCLA Medical Center during a stay at the facility.
At one point, McGraw had planned an episode of the "Dr. Phil" show about Spears, but quickly abandoned the idea. He has since apologized for discussing his visit publicly - but not for visiting her.

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