Accused ... Sean Mulveyhill. Credit:AP

"The events were not isolated, but the culmination of a nearly three-month campaign of verbally assaultive behaviour and threats of physical harm."

Prince enrolled last year at the high school in idyllic South Hadley after emigrating from County Clare in Ireland. On January 14, she walked home and hanged herself, to be discovered by her younger sister.

What might have remained a private tragedy erupted into public outrage on Monday when authorities announced the charges.

That outrage grew on Tuesday as parents confronted the disturbing details of the case, in which a student clique reportedly known as the Mean Girls allegedly made the newcomer's life hell in revenge for dating an older boy.

Worse, it was alleged that teachers were out of touch with student relationships and did not think of stepping in.

Scheibel said the bullying had been "common knowledge".

"Certain faculty, staff and administrators of the high school also were alerted to the harassment of Phoebe Prince before her death. Prior to Phoebe's death, her mother spoke with at least two school staff members about the harassment Phoebe had reported to her," the prosecutor said.

"A lack of understanding of harassment associated with teen dating relationships seems to have been prevalent at South Hadley High School."

The events were not isolated, but the culmination of a nearly three-month campaign of verbally assaultive behaviour and threats of physical harm

Mitchell Brouillard, the father of another bullying victim, said that anger was growing at the staff.

"I think quite a few people are complaining against the administrators of the school and might require resignations. All the administration at this point are equally responsible," he said.

"It's been going on for a couple of years now. My daughter decided to speak to some local reporters after Phoebe's suicide. And the day after the report was published, she was bullied again and physically harmed."

The mother of one of the students charged in bullying Prince spoke on Tuesday of her disbelief.

"We have strong values, and I don't like injustice, and injustice includes bullying or being racist," the mother, Angeles Chanon, told the Boston Herald daily.

"They're teenagers. They call names," Chanon said. "She did not physically assault (her). I know she knows better than that. I wouldn't accept that."

Insults and threats followed 15-year-old Phoebe Prince almost from her first day at South Hadley High School, Northampton, Massachusetts, targeting the Irish immigrant in the halls, library and in vicious mobile phone text messages.

Phoebe, ostracised for having a brief relationship with a popular boy, reached her breaking point and hanged herself after one particularly hellish day in January - a day that, according to US officials, included being hounded with slurs and pelted with a beverage container as she walked home from school.

Now, nine teenagers face charges in what a prosecutor called "unrelenting" bullying, including two teen boys charged with statutory rape and a clique of girls charged with stalking, criminal harassment and violating Phoebe's civil rights.

School officials won't be charged, even though authorities say they knew about the bullying and that Phoebe's mother brought her concerns to at least two of them.

Northwestern District Attorney Elizabeth Scheibel, who announced the charges on Monday, said the events before Phoebe's death on January 14 were "the culmination of a nearly three-month campaign of verbally assaultive behaviour and threats of physical harm" widely known among the student body.

"The investigation revealed relentless activity directed towards Phoebe, designed to humiliate her and to make it impossible for her to remain at school," Scheibel said. "The bullying, for her, became intolerable."

Scheibel said the case is still under investigation and that one other person could be charged. It wasn't immediately known on Monday whether the teens who have been charged have attorneys.

Scheibel said the harassment began in September, occurring primarily in school and in person, although some of it surfaced on Facebook and in other electronic forms. At least four students and two faculty members intervened to try to stop it or report it to administrators, she said.

Schiebel refused to discuss the circumstances of the rape charges.

No school officials are being charged because they had "a lack of understanding of harassment associated with teen dating relationships", and the school's code of conduct was interpreted and enforced in an "inconsistent" way, Scheibel said.

"Nevertheless, the actions - or inactions - of some adults at the school are troublesome," she said.

A message seeking comment was left on Monday for South Hadley Schools Superintendent Gus A. Sayer.

Phoebe was born in Bedford, England and moved to County Clare, Ireland, when she was two. She moved last summer to South Hadley, home to Mount Holyoke College, because the family had relatives there.

Her family has since moved away and could not immediately be located for comment. Scheibel spoke for them at a news conference to announce the charges.

"The Prince family has asked that the public refrain from vigilantism in favour of allowing the judicial system an opportunity to provide a measure of justice for Phoebe," she said.

Some students accused of participating in the bullying have been disciplined by the school and will not be returning to classes.

The Massachusetts Legislature cited Prince's death and the apparent suicide of 11-year-old Carl Walker-Hoover of Springfield last year when members passed anti-bullying legislation earlier this month.

South Hadley is among several college towns in western Massachusetts that pride themselves on their urbane cultural offerings, good schools and safe streets. After Phoebe's death, the community formed an anti-bullying task force that drew more than 400 people to its first meeting in February.

Robert Judge, a South Hadley selectman and task force member, said hundreds of people have become involved in hope that something good comes from the incident.

"Like most towns, we like to think of ourselves as a good place to live, and then this happens and your reputation is sullied nationally and even internationally, and people look at you differently, and they make assumptions," Judge said.

Scheibel said the teens will be issued summonses to appear in court on yet-undetermined dates. The teens who face criminal charges under the indictments announced on Monday are:

*Sean Mulveyhill, 17, of South Hadley. Charged with statutory rape, violation of civil rights resulting in bodily injury, criminal harassment and disturbance of a school assembly. A woman who answered the phone at his home on Monday would not identify herself and said: "You don't know the full story."

*Kayla Narey, 17, of South Hadley. Charged with violation of civil rights resulting in bodily injury, criminal harassment and disturbance of a school assembly.

*Austin Renaud, 18, of Springfield. Charged with statutory rape.

*Ashley Longe, 16, of South Hadley. Charged as a youthful offender with violation of civil rights resulting in bodily injury.

*Sharon Chanon Velazquez, 16, of South Hadley. Charged as a youthful offender with stalking and violation of civil rights resulting in bodily injury.

*Flannery Mullins, 16, of South Hadley. Charged as a youthful offender with stalking and violation of civil rights resulting in bodily injury.

Three 16-year-old South Hadley girls, whose names were not released, face delinquency charges that include the civil rights offence, criminal harassment and disturbance of a school assembly.

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* Support is available for anyone who may be distressed by calling SANE Helpline 1800 18 7263; Lifeline 131 114; Salvo Crisis Line (02) 8736 3295; beyondblue 1300 22 46 36.

AFP/AP