BPD investigating sexting scandal at second Bloomington high school

The Bloomington Police Department is investigating another case of child pornography dissemination at a Bloomington high school.

A 17-year-old girl reported to Bloomington High School South administrators that she took a nude photo of herself when she was 16 and sent it to her then-boyfriend via cell phone, BPD Sgt. Joe Crider said. The girl said she believes her ex-boyfriend sent the photo to another classmate.

The 18-year-old man told police he received various photos of the girl in varying degrees of dress. He said he deleted numerous photos but kept one and sent it to another classmate.

This classmate who received the photo reportedly disseminated it to several classmates.

Police said they will pursue this investigation in a similar manner to the case at Bloomington High School North in late February. At that time, police received reports of at least 14 different instances of child pornography being disseminated throughout the school.

In Indiana, disseminating images of a nude child younger than 18 years old is considered child exploitation, a felony, according to state law.

Ultimately, it will be up to the Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office if any criminal charges will be filed, Crider said.

The law has an exemption for individuals in an “ongoing personal relationship,” but the exemption cannot be applied if the person receiving the image disseminates it to another person.

Dennis Barbosa