Los Angeles ? The daughter of a woman accused of orchestrating a cruel Internet hoax against a 13-year-old girl who committed suicide took the witness stand Friday to defend her mother.

Sarah Drew, 16, said her mother, Lori Drew, initially thought it was a good idea to create a fictitious boy on a MySpace account to find out if Megan Meier was spreading rumors about Sarah.

But Sarah said her mother told a business assistant to shut down the MySpace account two weeks after it was created — well before the final message was sent saying the world would be better off if Megan was dead.

Megan, who had been treated for attention deficit disorder and depression, hanged herself in October 2006 after receiving the message.

Lori Drew has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy and accessing computers without authorization. If convicted of all counts, Drew faces up to 20 years in prison.

The trial also took another twist when U.S. District Judge George Wu said he will rule Monday on a defense motion calling for the dismissal of charges against the 49-year-old Drew.