Students accused of viewing porn on cell phones


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Team coverageTwo Ben Lomond high school students were caught in class with pornographic pictures on their cell phones, and now they could face criminal charges.

Long gone are days of passing notes in class. These days kids are passing porn on their cell phones, and when it happens at school, the penalties can be pretty harsh.

Lt. Loring Draper, with the Ogden City Police Department, said, "I don't think they realize it's pornography and it's illegal. Because of the technology, this is so available. I mean, hold your camera up and take a picture."

Police say the teens had sexually explicit pictures from the Internet on their phones and had a topless photo of a female friend who lives out of state.

A teacher caught the students using their phones in class. Police say one teen deleted the pictures; the other hid his memory card containing the photos in his sock.

The district has a strict policy that doesn't allow its high school students to turn on their cell phones in class.

District spokeswoman Donna Corby said, "Any time you have a disruption in class, be it a cell phone ringing or a text being received, that disrupts the learning environment."

In this case, the teens could be charged with possessing pornography. That's a misdemeanor, but police say because it happened at school, it's enhanced to a third degree felony.

Other schools are dealing with the same problem. In March 28 students were under investigation for sending nude pictures of themselves and others to friends. In May, West Jordan Police investigated a similar case.

Ogden police say it's happening all over the country. Lt. Draper said, "This is one of the first ones we have investigated, but I'm sure it's the tip of the iceberg."

The students have been suspended from school. A hearing will determine how long they'll be suspended. Police have referred the case to the Weber County Attorney's Office.

E-mail: syi@ksl.com
E-mail: mrichards@ksl.com
E-mail: tcallan@ksl.com

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