Death can be a frightening concept to even ponder, so it’s not surprising that an individual from Oregon was more than shocked when they discovered an obituary online, of themself. Going by the username Leather_Card3109 on Reddit, they explained their situation on r/legaladvice. Apparently, their personal and private information, including a photo, was leaked onto a suicide remembrance website, not a normal obituary website like Legacy.com.
For context, Leather_Card3109 brought this situation to Reddit to seek advice on pursuing legal action against whoever did this to them. Fortunately, the website admins were allegedly cooperative in removing the obituary as they were also shocked that someone’s fake suicide was recorded on the site. OP added that, according to the original submission form info, the obituary had been published years ago.
It Was Allegedly a Family Member Who Created a Fake Obituary
The bit that OP and many others on Reddit found shocking was that this suicide remembrance was created by a family member. Leather_Card3109 says this was someone “who has been consistently cruel and hurtful in my life.” “It’s worth a conversation with the police,” remarks a commenter.
In response to Redditors asking what this malicious family member wished to achieve, the Oregon resident believed it to be a form of defamation or libel. “In what way have you suffered damages?” asked a user, to which OP said, “Emotional. This is extremely hurtful.” While this is a valid answer, it could make things complicated if a court case were made over it.
“Sounds like the start to a psychological horror movie,” exclaimed a Redditor on r/bestoflegaladvice. “I cannot imagine someone paying a high fee as a bad joke. I can imagine someone doing that to cut someone out of a payout,” added another, referring to someone paying to put OP’s obituary online. However, Leather_Card3109 clarified that the site was free to use, so no payments were needed.
Since money isn’t involved and this particular family member allegedly hasn’t been involved in any estates or wills, the reason might have been simply personal, according to OP. “My family member was jealous of something,” Leather_Card3109 wrote. “Their history of cruel behavior isn’t new but this is just plain crazy.” As to whether they plan to confront the culprit over this discovery, they said not yet, since they “expect them to lie and deny it.”
