Young children are being tricked into watching extremely graphic video of Ronnie McNutt's suicide, leaving some with nightmares.
A Twitter user told how her 10-year-old "traumatised" sister "woke up out of her sleep crying" and begged people to stop posting the footage on social media.
Iraq War veteran Mr McNutt, 33, live streamed video on Facebook when he fatally shot himself at his home in the US city of New Albany Mississippi, on August 31.
The video wasn't taken down for almost two hours and it was still being posted this week on social media under fake titles or hidden within clips aimed at young children. Social media giants have been criticised for failing to block it sooner.
A woman named Brenda, who lives near Edinburgh, told the BBC that her 14-year-old daughter came running downstairs on Monday with her hand over her mouth, crying and saying she was going to be sick.
Is your child traumatised after he or she was tricked into watching the video? Email webnews@mirror.co.uk.
The mum said: "She was in such a state, shaking like a leaf and properly sobbing.
"I have never seen her that distressed. It was horrific and took ages to get the words out of her.
"My daughter was in a state of shock, still is in a state of shock and this could stay with her for months."
Brenda said her daughter has slept with a light on since then, cannot get the images out of her mind and was left so traumatised she didn't want to leave the house and had to miss school.
Brenda said her daughter had seen the video of Mr McNutt's suicide after it was listed within the recommended clips of TikTok's For You section.
The section automatically plays videos and many viewers did not realise what they were watching until it was too late.
The clip has also been posted under fake titles such as "Look at the pasta I cooked tonight" or disguised as clips of animals.
Twitter users have told how their children or siblings have been left traumatised.
One said: "My 10-year-old sister just woke up out of her sleep crying because someone tricked her into watching the Ronnie McNutt video. Stop sharing and sending s*** like this for fun, it’s sick and it’s traumatizing."
A parent wrote: "My 15-year-old daughter was sent a video of Ronnie McNutt committing suicide on a Facebook live stream. I hate she watched it."
Another wrote: "I wish I can unsee the video but I cannot unfortunately I can't and unfortunately it's permanently in me and my daughter's mind. She is so traumatized from the video she accidentally clicked on a link on TikTok."
A third added: "My pre-teen son just showed me the Ronnie McNutt video, pls start banning any related content."
Some parents have vowed to keep their children off social media until companies take steps to prevent such videos from appearing on their platforms.
One wrote: "I am deleting TikTok & stopping my children have access until this is rectified."
A close friend said Mr McNutt had struggled with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after serving with the US Army in Iraq.
Mr McNutt and his girlfriend had split up recently, Rolling Stone magazine reported, and he was "incredibly drunk" when he took his own life, said friend Joshua Steen.
Mr McNutt, named after his father, who died in February 2018, shared a tragic final post shortly before the live broadcast began.
It stated: "Someone in your life needs to hear that they matter. That they are loved.
"That they have a future. Be the one to tell them."
Family and friends watched the live stream as he killed himself. They had desperately tried to contact him in the moments before he ended his life.
The New Albany Police Department was alerted and went to his flat, but officers did not enter until after he died, Forbes reported.
Police Chief Chris Robertson said officers secured the perimeter, removed neighbours from their homes and used a speakerphone to try to communicate with Mr McNutt.
He said it was decided that Mr McNutt was “in such a mental state nobody could’ve gotten through to him"
The police chief added: “If I’d forced, the outcome probably would’ve been worse.”
But Mr Steen argued that the force could have intervened and saved Mr McNutt's life.
Mr Steen claims Facebook didn’t do enough to prevent the video from being streamed online or to remove offending content about the death in the days afterwards.
He told Forbes: “His entire family watched him commit suicide."
Mr Steen said he began sending messages to and calling Mr McNutt after he became aware of the live stream and watched a few seconds of his friend talking.
He said Mr McNutt, who would often host a live stream in which he "rambled", declined the calls and continued talking. There were hundreds of comments urging him to seek help.
In an interview with Heavy, he claimed "Facebook could’ve stopped this and didn’t", and said in his opinion the social media giant is “directly responsible” for the video being shared online and going viral.
Mr Steen said he and many other Facebook users reported the two-hour-long stream hundreds of times while Mr McNutt was still alive.
He claims he didn't receive a response from Facebook until about 90 minutes after Mr McNutt died.
He shared a screen grab of a reply from Facebook, which states: “This post will remain on Facebook because we only remove content that goes against our Community Standards. Our standards don’t allow things that encourage suicide or self-injury.”
Facebook has said the video was removed on the day it was posted, but Mr Steen claims it wasn't taken down until about three hours after the death. By then it was already being shared elsewhere.
The friends worked together on a podcast called JustUsGeeks and were involved in the local theatre scene.
Mr Steen added: “He didn’t seem to be the same guy that left for Iraq once he exited the service. I spent many a late night in our studio, via text message, and in person talking with him about life and his struggles.
"Mental health issues are very very real, and I honestly think that there are a lot of people who struggle with all areas of mental illness who let it go untreated. Or treat it with other things, it seems."
Vile trolls have since harassed Mr McNutt's family online, set up fake accounts under his name to claim the suicide was faked, and created fake fundraising campaigns.
Mr McNutt is survived by his mum Elaine, brother Joey, sister Mindy, three nieces and two nephews, according to an obituary. He was predeceased by his dad Cecil Ronald McNutt.
It states: "He enjoyed and performed theater plays. He was a member of the Comicons club.
"He was employed at the Toyota plant in Blue Springs, MS. Mr. McNutt is a Veteran of the United States Army Reserve where he served in the Iraq War."
Mr Steen has started a campaign called #ReformForRonnie, which calls on social media companies to respond swiftly and halt the spread of things such as horrific videos, threats, hate and disinformation.
He wrote in a blog post: "If Facebook had responded efficiently, the stream could have been terminated, his account suspended, and law enforcement could have been notified directly from Facebook."
He added: "We have seen catastrophic breakdowns of terms of service and sets of standards from every single major social media platform over the past week.
"We need social media reform immediately; any action other than immediate action is far too late. We need your help to bring about this immediate change."
The campaign calls on social media networks to accept responsibility for "all content created, posted, and distributed" on their platforms, adding: "You must immediately stop passing the blame on to the users when content you distribute actively harms them.
"Let me be clear: I am not saying the internet or social media should be censored.
"If you post a suicide video for children to find hidden in cute cat videos, there should be consequences, legal and otherwise."
A Facebook spokesman said: "We removed the original video from Facebook last month on the day it was streamed and have used automation technology to remove copies and uploads since that time."
"Our thoughts remain with Ronnie's family and friends during this difficult time."
A TikTok spokesperson said: "On Sunday night, clips of a suicide that had been livestreamed on Facebook circulated on other platforms, including TikTok.
"Our systems have been automatically detecting and flagging these clips for violating our policies against content that displays, praises, glorifies, or promotes suicide.
"We are banning accounts that repeatedly try to upload clips, and we appreciate our community members who've reported content and warned others against watching, engaging, or sharing such videos on any platform out of respect for the person and their family.
"If anyone in our community is struggling with thoughts of suicide or concerned about someone who is, we encourage them to seek support, and we provide access to hotlines directly from our app and in our Safety Centre."
The Samaritans is available 24/7 if you need to talk. You can contact them for free by calling 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or head to the website to find your nearest branch. You matter.
