Two teenagers have been charged and convicted of creating sexually explicit images of their classmates using artificial intelligence (AI). The boys, who were 14 at the time of offense, admitted to generating fabricated nude images by extracting photos from school pictures, yearbooks, Instagram, TikTok, and FaceTime chats in 2023 and 2024. The teens then morphed those images with explicit content involving adults.
Authorities said the pair created approximately 350 images depicting at least 59 underage girls, along with other unidentified victims.
The two 16-year-olds were convicted on Wednesday to six months of probation, 60 hours of community service, and ordered to pay $12,000 to help cover therapy costs for the victims. Prosecutors had sought harsher penalties, including detention, but the court declined to impose custody. As part of their probation, the teenagers will remain under supervision and must comply with conditions set by the juvenile court.
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Students and parents from Lancaster Country Day School gathered in court, where victims recounted the shock of being asked by detectives to identify themselves in pornographic images. The judge opened the juvenile proceeding to the public, aiming to allow the community to be heard.
Victims described lasting consequences, including harassment, diminished trust, difficulty concentrating on schoolwork, and fear that the images could resurface in the future. One said the experience “destroyed my innocence,” while another described “how excruciating it is to relive this again and again.” A third, fighting back tears, accused one defendant of showing “fake empathy” while girls confided in him before his involvement became known. Another victim said her friends transferred schools and that she “needed trauma therapy just to walk around my neighborhood.”
The two defendants remained expressionless in court as victims and parents denounced them as “sick,” “twisted,” and “perverted.” Judge Leonard Brown noted that neither boy had apologized or taken responsibility, despite being given multiple opportunities to address the court.
Defense attorney Heidi Freese called the case “a regrettable, long, torturous process for everyone involved,” adding that broader legal questions surrounding such charges remain unresolved and may be decided in future cases. Lawyers for the other defendant said in a statement that he was “extremely remorseful” and “very sorry for any hurt he caused.”
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Judge Brown convicted both boys and ordered them to have no contact with the victims and to pay unspecified restitution. If they avoid further legal trouble, their records may be expunged after two years. He added that, had they been adults, they likely would have faced state prison, urging them to “take this opportunity to really examine” themselves.
Last year, President Donald Trump signed the Take It Down Act, which makes it illegal to publish intimate images—including deepfakes—without consent and requires platforms to remove such content within 48 hours of notification.
Forty-six states now have laws addressing deepfakes. Legislation has been introduced in the remaining four—Alaska, Missouri, New Mexico, and Ohio—according to the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen.