They demand the release of the influencer who killed a woman and her baby because he is “too cute”: he keeps adding followers on TikTok | the Chronicle

An unusual situation surrounds the case of uAn 18-year-old influencer who murdered a mother and her baby by hitting them with his car at 160 km / h while he was diving with another friend. The strange question is that thousands of followers of the young man, who is serving a sentence of 24 years in prison, they ask for their freedom because it is “too cute” be in jail.

The young man is called Cameron Herrin, who crushed Jessica Reisinger-Raubenolt, 24, as she crossed the street in Tampa, Florida with her baby, Lilia, 20 months, in May 2018. Herrin reached speeds of 160 kilometers per hour with his Ford Mustang. At the time of impact, it only managed to reduce speed to 65 kilometers per hour.

After panicking and in shock, the young man pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter in December 2018 and was sentenced to 24 years in prison in April 2021.

Since then, thousands of the killer’s followers on TikTok have called for his release, arguing that “he didn’t do it on purpose” and what “too cute” be in jail. In addition, users file their complaint under the hashtag #justiceforcameron (Justice for Cameron) and under the precepts that the murderer “Deserves a second chance”. Cameron turned into a murderer and influencer overnight.

In an attempt to portray the young killer as a good and respected person, fans share videos on TikTok of Herrin during his trial wearing a suit and tie. While many accounts appear to be bots created to cash in on the trend, others appear to be real killer obsessed people..

Herrin’s own mother, Cheryl Herrin, expressed concern for his son’s supporters on the Internet and assured that he had received calls from supporters in Middle Eastern countries. “It’s almost like an obsession, an unhealthy obsession”the woman blamed the Tampa Bay Times, Florida.

Additionally, Herrin’s mother said several of her family and old friends from her son’s school were harassed online. As if that wasn’t enough, Herrin’s girlfriend suffered a hack into her social media accounts.

Hundreds of calls have been made to the Central Florida Reception Center of the Florida Department of Corrections, where Herrin is being held. Prison guards told US media the young man’s phone numbers were leaked online.

After this unusual situation, Cheryl ensured that her son had been transferred to solitary confinement at the Graceville Correctional Center.

Herrin has two million followers

In Tiktok posts, users voice their complaints with sad music, broken hearts, and captions like “Please don’t take that smile off”. Moreover, the tiktokers describe them as a “poor boy” whose crime was not committed by “in regards to”.

The Killer Drive has racked up a total of 2.2 billion views on the TikTok social media platform. His followers’ videos shared with the hashtag #justiceforcameron have been viewed 26.1 million times. Likewise, Herrin’s account already has two million followers, without even any content posted by him. The young man also has a Facebook page with over 12,000 members.

Shelby grossman, from the Stanford Internet Observatory, assured the Tampa Bay Times that some of the accounts from the Middle East are in fact spam, which appears to be used by digital marketing companies.

In this sense, Twitter had to suspend around 900 accounts posted on Herrin. With this measure, 90,000 tweets were eliminated for violating the platform’s manipulation and spam policies.

Herrin was out with a friend on May 23, 2018 to a Tampa-area gym. The killer was driving a Ford Mustang, while his friend, Jean BarrineauHe was driving a golden Nissan. The two vehicles stopped side by side at a traffic light to prepare for the dive.

Meanwhile, Reisinger-Raubenolt, who was pushing his daughter in a stroller, was about to cross the street on Gandy Boulevard as the two cars approached. The golden Nissan swerved to avoid the mother and daughter, but Herrin failed to do so and crashed into the family.

The lawsuit against the influencer and his friend

The deputy prosecutor presented evidence of speeding in the Mustang in the days leading up to the crash, exceeding 260 kilometers per hour. On the day of the accident, the car was traveling at 160 km / h, but managed to slow down to 65, before impact.

Herrin called his mother, who had given the Mustang to her son after the accident, and told her he had “killed someone”.

The judge saw Herrin’s speed record and decided to execute him with a 24-year prison sentence.

Cheryl told the judge: “I feel responsible for this accident. If I could, I would stand in front of Cameron and accept whatever punishment you might give.”. He also spoke about the suffering of Cameron and another son, Tristan, who was a passenger of Cameron during the fatal crash.

“I will hear screams at night from both guys”Cheryl said. “They have anxiety attacks and panic attacks”, the woman had said.

Meanwhile, Herrin’s friend, who drove the golden Nissan, Jean Barrineau, made a deal with the state in exchange for a six-year prison sentence. Plus, you’ll have 15 years of probation, required to complete 200 hours of community service, half of which will be talking about the dangers of reckless driving.