Two juvenile boys from Standley Lake High School in Jefferson County, Colorado, are both accused of felony crimes involving sexting.  The incident began when someone dared a freshman girl in the back seat of a car to perform a sex act on a junior boy while they drove to a baseball game from Westminster to Fort Collins. The seventeen year old boy was sitting in the front and recorded them. He forwarded the video to others including the sixteen year old boy, who continued to pass it on. The two boys who filmed and distributed the video are being charged with Juvenile Sexual Exploitation of a Child (CRS 18-6-403). While they wait for a trial they are not allowed to be in the possession of cell phones.

If an adult is accused of Sexual Exploitation of a Child in Denver, Jefferson, Adams, Arapahoe, Douglas, Larimer, or Weld County it is a very serious felony crime as well. They are subject to indeterminate sentencing, registration as a sex offender, and supervision by the Colorado Sex Offender Management Board (SOMB). The Standley Lake boys are juveniles and even though they will not be treated as harshly as an adult would be in cities like Denver, Englewood, Littleton, Aurora, Broomfield, Highlands Ranch, or Arvada, there is still the possibility that they both will have to register as a sex offender if they are convicted.

Teens and juveniles who are in the know about new technology should realize that it is never safe to send sexual pictures over text or video message, even of themselves. An experienced defense attorney will caution juveniles who forward or possess a video with minors engaged in sex acts, to prepare to face felony charges of Sexual Exploitation of a Child.

If convicted, these boys face time in a juvenile detention center and will be required to register as a sex offender. That label may haunt them for years and inhibit where they may live, work, and go to school. If you think that your child or teen may have questionable content on their phone, or are worried they might be charged with Sexual Exploitation of a Child, be smart, exercise their right to remain silent, and call the experienced criminal defense attorneys at the O'Malley Law Office at 303-830-0880. Together, we can protect your child's future.