In Loveland and Fort Collins, juvenile sexting, or issues related to juveniles possessing sexually explicit images of other juveniles, are treated very differently than if an adult possessed a sexually explicit image of a juvenile or was sexting with someone underage. Let’s take a look at how juvenile sexting cases are handled in Larimer County and across Colorado.
Fort Collins Posting a Private Image by a Juvenile Attorney
The Fort Collins, Colorado law definition of Posting a Private Image by a Juvenile – C.R.S. 18-7-109(1) – is:
(a) Knowingly distributes, displays, or publishes to the view of another person a sexually explicit image of a person other than himself or herself who is at least fourteen years of age or is less than four years younger than the juvenile:
(I) Without the depicted person’s permission; or
(II) When the recipient did not solicit or request to be supplied with the image and suffered emotional distress; or
(III) When the juvenile knew or should have known that the depicted person had a reasonable expectation that the image would remain private; or
(b) Knowingly distributes, displays, or publishes, to the view of another person who is at least fourteen years of age or is less than four years younger than the juvenile, a sexually explicit image of himself or herself when the recipient did not solicit or request to be supplied with the image and suffered emotional distress.
We often see these cases come from a one teen showing his or her friends an image that was sent to them by another teen. For example, a 16 years old girl sends a topless photo to a similarly aged boy she likes. He shows his friends the photo and word gets around school. Posting a private image by a juvenile is a class 2 misdemeanor; except that it is a class 1 misdemeanor if:
- The juvenile committed the offense with the intent to coerce, intimidate, threaten, or otherwise cause emotional distress to the depicted person; or
- The juvenile had previously posted a private image and completed a diversion program or education program for the act pursuant to the provisions of this section or had a prior adjudication for posting a private image by a juvenile; or
- The juvenile distributed, displayed, or published three or more images that depicted three or more separate and distinct persons.
Lawyer for Possessing a Private Image by a Juvenile in Larimer County
The Larimer County, Colorado law definition of Possessing a Private Image by a Juvenile – C.R.S. 18-7-109(2) – is:
(a) Took reasonable steps to either destroy or delete the image within seventy-two hours after initially viewing the image; or
(b) Reported the initial viewing of such image to law enforcement or a school resource officer within seventy-two hours after initially viewing the image.
An example of this case would be a teen asked to borrow her friend’s phone. While on the phone, she looks through the photos and finds a sexually explicit image of the friend. She sends the image to herself. The friend later realizes she has the image and reports it. Possessing a private image by a juvenile is a petty offense; except that it is a class 2 misdemeanor if the unsolicited possessor of the image possessed ten or more separate images that depicted three or more separate and distinct persons.
Civil Infraction of Exchange of Private Image by a Juvenile Attorney in Fort Collins: Juvenile Sexting
The Colorado law definition of Civil Infraction of Exchange of Private Image by a Juvenile – C.R.S. 18-7-109(3) – is:
(a) Knowingly sends a sexually explicit image or images of himself or herself to another person who is at least fourteen years of age or is less than four years younger than the juvenile, and the image or images depict only the sender and no other person and the sender reasonably believed that the recipient had solicited or otherwise agreed to the transmittal of the image or images; or
(b) Knowingly possesses a sexually explicit image or images of another person who is at least fourteen years of age or is less than four years younger than the juvenile, and the image or images depict only the sender and no other person and the juvenile reasonably believed that the depicted person had transmitted the image or images or otherwise agreed to the transmittal of the image or images.
This is the true ‘sexting’ statute. Two teens are consensually sharing explicit images of themselves. Exchange of a private image by a juvenile is a civil infraction and is punishable by participation in a program designed by the school safety resource center or other appropriate program addressing the risks and consequences of exchanging a sexually explicit image of a juvenile or a fine of up to fifty dollars.