7 St. Peter's teens may face charges...

[Anakin Flair 0]

From http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stor...%2CSt.%2CPeters (damn, that's a long link)

 

7 St. Peters teens may face charges over explicit video

By Susan Weich

Post-Dispatch

09/24/2003

 

 

Seven St. Peters high school sophomores who police say made a sexually explicit videotape now may face child pornography charges.

 

Police found out about the tape, made this month, after one of the boys downloaded a nude digital image onto his cell phone and then tried to sell copies at Fort Zumwalt South High School. Police said he told students that if they liked the picture, he had a videotape with more of the same that they could watch for $5.

 

"It's shocking that they would do this to another girl, whether she was willing or not, and then try to make money off it," said St. Peters police Sgt. David Kuppler.

 

Two girls and five boys, all 15, participated in making the videotape, police said. The taping took place over two days in a wooded area behind one of the girls' homes and in the bedroom of one of the boys' homes, police said.

 

Three of the boys have been referred to juvenile court on charges of promoting child pornography, furnishing pornographic materials to a minor and promoting a sexual performance by a child. The other four are under investigation and may be charged, police say.

 

Kuppler said the incident started when the two girls decided they were going to get together to experiment sexually and "word got out." Five boys came over to one of the girls' homes in St. Peters and wanted to videotape the encounter.

 

The tape shows the girls kissing, Kuppler said. The group then went to the wooded area, where one of the girls took off her clothes and posed for the camera in various positions, he said.

 

The next day, one of the boys asked his friends to come to his home, and the taping resumed in his bedroom. This time the tape shows the girl not only posing nude, but also letting two of the boys touch her genitals.

 

Police say the girl originally told them that she was coerced into participating in the sex act, but a review of the tape indicated she was a willing participant. The tape is less than 10 minutes long, Kuppler said.

 

About 10 days later, one of the boys started showing the picture around school, and two students reported it to the school resource officer. He contacted the administration, and police began an investigation, Kuppler said.

 

Police have seized the tape from the boy's bedroom and believe they have all of the copies made of the video.

 

But Kuppler cautioned that in the digital format, the video would be "extremely accessible" to send out and duplicate. And if it does make it to the Internet, it would be impossible to remove, he said.

 

Students at the high school Tuesday said rumors about the videotape were widespread.

 

"I'm not sure how much of what I've heard is true," said Josh Smith, a senior.

 

Amanda Doll, a sophomore, said that she knows one of the boys involved and couldn't believe he would do that.

 

"People shouldn't be exploiting other people like that," she said.

 

One parent, Manuela Goodman, said she was upset that the school administration hadn't notified parents about the incident.

 

"We put our kids into their hands eight hours a day, and as a mother, I'm scared," she said. "They should have warned us. This is dangerous."

 

A district spokeswoman said the school is preparing a letter to send home to parents, possibly today.

 

Fort Zumwalt Superintendent Bernard DuBray said the student who had been showing the picture on the phone had been disciplined. He said none of the other students were punished by the district because their involvement took place outside of school.

 

Graham Weir, principal at South High School, said the situation had been "sad for all these families and for these kids."

 

He said the incident was a wake-up call for parents to pay closer attention to what their kids are doing, what they see on TV and what kind of movies they watch.

 

"Kids tend to mimic what they see elsewhere," Weir said. "They don't just create something like this out of the blue."

 

Weir also said parents should pay attention to the technology they put in their children's hands.

 

"With technology comes responsibility," he said.

 

Shane Anthony of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.

 

Reporter Susan Weich:

E-mail: [email protected]

Phone: 636-255-7210

 

If this is the future of our country, I'm going like Depp and moving to France.

[Jingus 0]

Three of the boys have been referred to juvenile court on charges of promoting child pornography, furnishing pornographic materials to a minor and promoting a sexual performance by a child. The other four are under investigation and may be charged, police say.

Um, can anyone explaining the logic of prosecuting underage children for "furnishing pornographic materials to a minor" or "promoting a sexual performance of a child"? Hell, why not go arrest every kid who's ever been in any kind of naked photograph and charge them all with manufacturing child pornography? Idiots.

[Red Baron 0]

child pornography from childs...

 

seems ironic and odd...

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

The tape is less than 10 minutes long, Kuppler said.

Yep, you know high schoolers made this one. Need a little more experience in the sack before making movies, kids...

[Skywarp! 0]

Yes, this story is disgusting, but...

 

"He said the incident was a wake-up call for parents to pay closer attention to what their kids are doing, what they see on TV and what kind of movies they watch"

 

That's not true. Doesn't anyone else remember being a pubescent and making up all kinds of fantasies in their heads? There's always blame to lay, I suppose.

[NoCalMike 0]

What is shocking and absurd is for adults to act like teenagers engaging in sex acts are something new. I would be a bit alarmed about the fact there were 5 guys present when it was happening, but teenagers do sexual stuff.....WOW STOP THE FUCKING PRESSES.

[MrRant 0]

I don't think teens should be producing porn though.

[NoCalMike 0]

I don't think teens should be producing porn though.

well of course not. No one thinks they SHOULD. However this is not some new phenomenom among teens.