A federal grand jury in Los Angeles returned an indictment Thursday against Lori Drew of O’Fallon, Mo., in the MySpace case that ended in the suicide of Megan Meier.

Drew, 49, was named in a four-count indictment that charges one count of conspiracy and three counts of accessing protected computers without authorization to obtain information to inflict emotional distress on Meier, who was referred to in the indictment only as M.T.M.

According to a news release from U.S. Attorney Thomas P. O’Brien, the indictment alleges that Drew and others registered as a member of MySpace under the name of Josh Evans, then began corresponding with Meier in what the girl believed was an online romance. After the “romance” ended, Meier hanged herself in her room.

“This adult woman allegedly used the Internet to target a young teenage girl, with horrendous ramifications,” O’Brien said.

Drew declined to comment, referring questions to her lawyer. She will be summoned to appear for arraignment in federal court in Los Angeles in June; she is expected to surrender to authorities in St. Louis. The conspiracy count carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison; each count of accessing protected computers also carries a maximum possible penalty of five years in prison.

Given that St. Charles County prosecutor Jack Banas refused to prosecute Drew, since “It’s not a violation of state law,” should Drew face prosecution and a possible 20-year prison sentence?