A 13-year-old girl posted on TikTok that she didn’t think she would live beyond the age of 14 just months before she died, a coroner has heard.
Maia Walsh was found dead at her home in Hertford on 6 October 2022 and had been watching “concerning” content on TikTok in the run-up to her death, a pre-inquest review hearing heard on Wednesday.
One of her accounts had a username that correlated to the month that Maia passed, Hertfordshire coroner’s court heard. On 6 March 2022, Maia responded to a comment asking: “What do you want to be when you are older?” She replied: “I don’t think I’ll live past 14.”
Maia had at least four TikTok accounts, and her inquest will look at what videos she was seeing and interacting with ahead of her death.
Coroner Jacques Howell said he would request that TikTok share information on all videos created or shared by Maia’s accounts, the content of any responses, comments or reactions to any of the material, and any of Maia’s interactions on the platform.
Her father, Liam Walsh, sued TikTok and its parent firm, ByteDance, in the US last month in an effort to force the firm to release Maia’s data.
He joins the bereaved families of three other children – Isaac Kenevan, Archie Battersbee and Julian “Jools” Sweeney.
The wrongful death legal case claims the four died attempting a so-called “blackout challenge”, where participants hold their breath until they pass out because of a lack of oxygen, and said parents want access to their children’s account data to “get answers” about how they died.
Jessica Elliott, barrister for the family, told the coroner that a “key question” for Maia’s parents was “whether social media magnified or exacerbated a small interest and ran with and took it further”.
Ms Elliott argued that it would be relevant to understand whether young people’s suicidal or depressive thoughts were being amplified by TikTok’s algorithm.
Mr Howell said he was more concerned with what Maia had “seen or interacted with” and that how she came to see it was a different issue, but that he would bear the request in mind in future hearings.
Ms Elliott told the court: “It’s easy to imagine that what people look at on the internet is their choice.” She said the family wanted to understand “was this her choice, what she saw”.
Ms Elliott said on rare occasions Maia’s family grew concerned about her behaviour, referencing some photos taken by Maia in a woodland in September 2022 that worried her parents.
Mr Howell also suggested that he might ask for disclosure from WhatsApp to understand more about Maia’s messaging up until the date of her death.
Maia’s father, Mr Walsh, who attended the hearing, has previously said that he wants to get the truth about his daughter’s social media activity.
“If it takes 10 years or 15 years for the truth to emerge, so be it. I will not accept anything less than the truth in relation to my child.
“It’s the least I deserve, it’s the least my family deserve, it’s the least Maia deserves.”
If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call or text 988, or visit 988lifeline.org to access online chat from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you
