Closed Doors, Open Wounds: Investigating Hidden Online Harm

1:30pm
-2:30pm

Predators who manipulate people in mental health crisis thrive in the shadows: closed groups, encrypted chats, disappearing platforms, and loopholes in policy and law. Joy Ash’s new documentary Poisoned, based on reporting by James Beal, deputy investigations editor at The Times of London, shines a light on this hidden ecosystem and the devastating ripple effects on families and communities. Kenneth Law, a Canadian former chef, allegedly sent 1,000–1,200 packages to people in distress across 41 countries, with authorities linking dozens of UK deaths and hundreds worldwide to products tied to him as he awaits trial on 14 counts of murder and 14 counts of aiding or counseling suicide, which he denies. Poisoned traces how Beal, working with affected families, exposed this supply chain and the suicide forums that surfaced it, while navigating legal risk, trauma, and the line between accountability and amplification.