Police arrested a 15-year-old girl and charged her with possession of child pornography after having her iPhone confiscated from teachers who thought she was using it to cheat on a test found pictures of two juveniles engaged in a sexual act, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
When authorities searched the phone further they learned that the photo had been sent to another student who posted it on Twitter. Authorities have not released the identity of that student but they are expected to make an arrest very soon.
"Any time you take a photograph or a video of children, anyone under the age of 18, engaged in sexual conduct, it's considered production of child pornography," detective William Lindsey told the Orlando Sentinel. "It's illegal to take the photograph or the video, it's illegal to possess it and it's illegal to transmit it."
The girl who took the picture and the girl in the picture were friends at the time the photo was taken. Eventually they had a falling out and the girl who took the picture started showing it to other people and sent it to at least one other student, according to the New York Daily News.
Wiregrass Ranch High School principal Robyn White was concerned that students, and possibly parents, wouldn't understand how serious of an offense the picture was. In order to convey that message White sent out a call to the parents of all students at Wiregrass Ranch as well as the incoming freshman class, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
"This is a very serious offense and could have negative consequences for the rest of this student's life," White said in the call. "I want to urge parents to monitor their students' phone and Internet activity to protect them from similar charges. I also want to remind students that it's not worth it to take images of body parts or activities that could result in criminal charges."
Lindsey also advocated for parents to monitor their child's activities on the Internet reminding them that in most cases once something has made it on to the Internet there is virtually no way to hide it again.
"That's a problem we're trying to educate kids on: You can't take back what you put on the Internet," Lindsey told the Orlando Sentinel. "There is no 'taking it off the Internet.' There's no such thing because you don't have control of it any more."
