Police Chief: Hundreds involved in nude picture exchange, distribution at Caon City High School
The Caon City Police Chief told parents at a meeting Thursday night hundreds of Caon City High School students could be involved in the collection and distribution of nude photos.
Police Chief Paul Schultz said it will be a huge investigation. Superintendent George Welsh would not verify Schultz’s estimate that hundreds are involved or how many students have been expelled.
Several parents said their students report nude photos are swapped in the school “like trading cards” and it’s been a problem at the school for years. Welsh said investigators are working to answer those questions.
Hundreds of parents packed the school’s gym Thursday to hear from the police chief, superintendent and district attorney about the investigation.
Students as young as 8th grade took pictures of themselves that were then distributed. The school district said there is an equal number of girls and boys pictured in the photos.
Welsh said the school district was first notified Monday after students were taking and sharing nude photos of themselves.
Welsh said school staff has discovered students have been using applications that hide the photos in secret locations in smart phones. He described a large scale distribution of photos. So far, hundreds of photos have been discovered.
The school district cannot verify that distribution happened exclusively in or outside of the school, but do know some exchanges happened in school.
Welsh told parents Thursday that this incident is not exclusive to the school district or Caon City, but is instead, a nationwide issue.
“If people don’t think this stuff isn’t happening in their community, they have their heads buried in the sand,” said Welsh.
The school decided to cancel Friday’s football game because of the incident. It was the last game of the season.
The district says that according to the police department, a person can be charged with a class 3 felony if they are a minor and have taken a picture of themselves showing a naked private body part and sent it to another person, have received such a picture of a minor and forwarded it to another person, or have received such a picture of a minor and retained possession of it over time.
District Attorney Thom LeDoux said parents can also be at risk of being charged with a crime if their student has hidden photos on the adult’s technology devices. LeDoux encouraged parents to contact the police department to get rid of the materials.
The district says that the focus of the police investigation is on whether any adults were involved and if any photos were coerced. The DA’s office will determine whether to file any charges.
The Caon City School District says that regardless of whether police take action, it will hold students accountable for their actions as outlined in district policies relating to cyber bullying, sexual harassment and irresponsible behavior.
The school district says that in the coming weeks it will build a plan to educate students about behaving responsibly online and is encourages parents to talk to their children about this issue as well.
