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BUENA VISTA, Colo. (AP) — For the second time in five weeks, authorities are looking into complaints about sexting involving students in Colorado.
The Chaffee County Sheriff's Department is investigating reports of sexting at a middle school and high school in Buena Vista. The investigation was announced Thursday on the sheriff's website.
It wasn't immediately known whether the Buena Vista complaints were related to a previous investigation in Canon City in neighboring Fremont County, about a 90-minute drive away.
More than 100 Canon City High School students were allegedly involved in exchanging explicit photos on their cellphones. Prosecutors announced Wednesday they would not file charges in that case.
Chaffee County Sheriff John Spezze and Buena Vista School District Superintendent Sue Holmes declined to comment Friday.
In a news release, Chaffee County officials said the investigation involved McGinnis Middle School and Buena Vista High School. They said they began receiving complaints about two weeks ago.
No other details were released.
In the Fremont County case, District Attorney Thom LeDoux said investigators found no evidence of coercion or bullying. He said no adults appeared to have been involved and none of the 351 images was posted to the Internet.
Some students were suspended when the scandal became public in November, but officials didn't say how many. The high school football team forfeited its last game of the season because players were involved.
LeDoux said the Fremont County School District would offer education about sexting to both students and their parents.
Sexting is increasingly common among teenagers, experts say. A recent study by Jeff Temple, an associate professor and psychologist at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, found 28 percent of teens engage in texting.
Temple has said sexting is a form of flirting and mostly happens between teens who are in a relationship, or want to be.
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