Teen ‘Sexting’ can Lead to Jail Time

Incidents of teens taking nude or semi-nude pictures of themselves and sending them to the cell phones of their boyfriends or girlfriends as text messages are much more than a potentially embarrassing skeleton in the closet, according to Paul Iannace, of the Pennsylvania State Police Computer Crime Task Force.

Iannace told WFMZ-TV that according to Pennsylvania state law, these actions, known as “sexting” can actually be considered three separate felonies, since the teens who take and share the pictures are actually producing, disseminating and possessing child pornography.

The topic of sexting got a lot of attention in the this fall, when nude photos of current and past students were discovered on an international porn Web site. The photos, , were uploaded to the site by the girls’ former boyfriends, who had gotten them via cell phone text messages when they were still dating.

The Lehigh County District Attorney's Office is offering local schools some help in educating students on the dangers of sexting. Christie Bonesch, chief of administration in the district attorney's office, will talk with students about the legal consequences of sexting and what can happen if they are charged as an adult or juvenile. To schedule a presentation, call the district attorney’s office at 610-782-3100.