(AP Photo/Jacques Brinon)
Nassau County District Attorney’s office unveiled Wednesday an anti-bullying public service announcement featuring Justin Bieber that helps resolve a criminal settlement with the pop superstar’s management team stemming from an incident at Roosevelt Field three years ago.
The anti-bullying video and a newly created website is focused on educating and supporting students, parents and teachers in the fight against cyberbullying, prosecutors said.
Bieber agreed to the PSA as part of a criminal settlement with his record label Island Def Jam Music Group, and his manager’s company, Remster3 LLC for the 2009 promotional event that brought hundreds of unruly Bieber fans to the popular mall for an autograph signing.
Calls from law enforcement to cancel the event for crowd safety reasons were disregarded by his management team, prosecutors said.
“I felt strongly that the companies should be held responsible for refusing to help law enforcement resolve this dangerous situation,” Rice said in a statement. “I saw an opportunity for something innovative that would be a much larger benefit to the community than the companies just paying a few hundred dollars in fines. Unusual cases often require innovative solutions and I think we were able to find one here.”
The video, which parents and educators can watch on YouTube, will also be distributed to schools in Nassau County.
Rice also noted that the website features information about a recent anti-bullying law, New York’s Dignity for All Students Act, which requires schools to designate a specially trained coordinator to handle bullying reports.
