A Wentzville, Mo. mother was charged with misdemeanor child endangerment after a topless photo circulated on popular social media website, Snap Chat.
According to KMOV News, the photo was of a mother and her 14-year-old daughter, topless in a bot tub. The "inappropriate" photo was shared throughout the local high schools, according to prosecutors.
"The issue here is the fact the daughter was 14 and the mother was clearly present and involved when the photo was taken," St. Charles County Prosecutor Tim Lohmar told KMOV.
"It certainly appeared that the picture was posed and it certainly had some sexual overtones," Lohmar added.
The mother's name has not been released in order to protect her children. According to KMOV, the mother was aware her other daughter was taking the photo. She claims she wasn't posing for the picture, but rather getting into the hot tub.
The Smoking Gun reports the mother and daughter were "covering up their nipples" in the photographs. The woman's son was made fun of as a result of the topless photo going viral in his school. The teen also had "court mandated counseling" for taking nude photos of herself, according to the probable cause statement.
"I was aware the photo was taken, and I told her at that second, please delete that photo," the mom told KMOV.
However, Lohmar claims the mom showed "poor judgment" and needs to take responsibility. The mother is facing probation or up to a year in jail, according to KMOV.
"This was a mother who made a very poor choice, I don't think she had any intention that this would blow up the way it did, but it did and she only has her poor judgment to blame for that," Lohmar said.
You can read the full probable cause statement for the case here.
