(The Lion) — Two students who made and distributed deepfake porn of their female classmates at an upscale Pennsylvania private school have been sentenced to 60 hours of community service.
The minors, who were 14 at the time of the crimes and are now 16, pleaded guilty to 59 felony counts related to manufacturing child sexual abuse material. They were caught in late 2024, disrupting Lancaster Country Day School and the small community around it.
Multiple victims spoke at the sentencing hearing March 25 about ongoing trauma from the abuse. Some still experience panic attacks, depression, anxiety, nightmares and fear of being alone, as well as an overwhelming sense of betrayal. Many said they are afraid the images will follow them through life, including when they apply for jobs or meet potential romantic partners, USA Today reported.
“I never imagined school yearbook photos would be used for your own satisfaction,” one victim said as the perpetrators looked on. “Your actions affect me every day.”
Judge Leonard Brown said the boys likely avoided jail because they are not adults. “The juvenile justice system gives second chances,” he said, adding he hopes they “take this opportunity to really examine themselves.”
They also avoided a new Pennsylvania law explicitly criminalizing the making or dissemination of AI-generated child sexual abuse material, which took effect in December 2024.
Rebecca Tushnet, a Harvard Law School professor specializing in the First Amendment, told The Lion that prosecution of young offenders should focus on “preventing further harm to others, including their young victims, and enabling them to grow up to do better, which prison rarely does without more investment in them.”
If the boys comply with the sentence – which includes committing no new crimes during two years’ probation, an unspecified amount of restitution and no contact with the victims – the case is eligible to be expunged at the end of the two years.
The school, which says it “continues to heal” and move forward together, is facing a lawsuit from parents of many of the girls. Of the 60 females targeted, 48 were classmates and 12 were acquaintances. Only one victim was over 18.
The boys made a total of 347 sexualized photos and videos from October 2023 to May 2024.
The school received a tip in late 2023 but didn’t notify police, according to the lawsuit. The school filed a report with the state in May 2024 after receiving more information, but a criminal investigation did not begin until parents informed police, according to the local district attorney’s office.
States and the federal government are grappling with the rise in AI-generated deepfake porn.
President Donald Trump last year signed the Take It Down Act, which first lady Melania Trump championed, making it illegal to publish such images and requiring websites to take them down upon receiving notice from a victim.
In January, the U.S. Senate passed the Defiance Act to give victims a clearer path to hold creators and distributors accountable in court, but the House has yet to act on the legislation.
All but four states – Alaska, Missouri, New Mexico and Ohio – have passed laws addressing deepfakes, but loopholes remain, including no mandated reporting requirement when both the creator and victim are minors.
Pennsylvania state Sen. Tracy Pennycuick, R-Harleysville, is sponsoring legislation to address that remaining ambiguity, saying, “If you suspect that there is any kind of child sexual abuse material, you report.”
(Photo by Markus Winkler, Unsplash)