Why can't cyber bullies be prosecuted for slander or libel?

The cases are very different things—yelling “fire” in a crowded theater (when there isn’t one) would serve to cause panic, and is generally illegal under something like “inciting a riot” or “reckless endangerment” or something else I heard on Law & Order. Teenagers are really mean to each other. A lot. You hear about it in the news when it has a devastating outcome, like murder and suicide. However, the intent was not to cause the girl to commit suicide (okay, I haven’t been following the case, but that’s my un-informed opinion).

Read up on defamation, here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defamation

Plus, slander and libel are a matter of civil law, not criminal law. Maybe you could bring a civil suit against someone (although probably not—1st amendment freedom of speech will protect almost all speech) but you couldn’t prosecute them.

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=cyberbully&btnG=Search+News

Looks like states just started passing legislation to address this after the incident in MO.