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NEW ORLEANS (WVUE/Gray News) - Investigators in Louisiana say a middle school student has been charged with sharing explicit photos of other students that were created by artificial intelligence. The Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office says there is an ongoing investigation into an incident involving fake nude photos of female students at Sixth Ward Middle School. A male student is facing 10 counts of unlawful dissemination of images created by AI. Detectives opened the investigation with school administrative staff on Aug. 26 after some male students reportedly shared the photos on a school bus and at school. This led to an altercation on a school bus involving the suspect and one of the victims, a 13-year-old student. The suspect was booked Sept. 15. The update on the investigation comes after last week’s Lafourche School Board meeting. Attorneys representing the 13-year-old spoke in her defense after she was expelled for fighting the suspect on the bus. “Her image was taken by artificial intelligence and manipulated and manufactured to be child pornography,” said attorney Matt Ory at the meeting. Ory and attorney Benjamin Comeaux question why the school allowed their client and the suspect on the same bus after the girl told school administrators about the AI photos earlier in the day. “She was forced to undergo bullying with her naked picture running around,” Comeaux said. Sheriff Craig Webre says the 13-year-old involved in the altercation on the bus will not face criminal charges. He adds investigators are committed to ensuring “accountability of those involved.” Additional arrests and charges in the case are possible. “While the ability to alter images has been available for decades, the rise of AI has made it easier for anyone to alter or create such images with little-to-no training or experience,” Webre said. “This incident highlights a serious concern that all parents should address with their children.” The suspect is being charged under Act 142, a bill authored by state Sen. Patrick Connick (R-Marrero) and passed into law last year. It makes it illegal for someone to create and distribute AI nude images of someone without their consent. WVUE’s legal analyst Joe Raspanti says it’s often difficult for legislation to proactively govern new technology such as AI. “Science always outstrips the law,” Raspanti said. “Back in the 80s, it was surrogate parenthood that affected donations and successions. Then, you had DNA testing in criminal law, which the law had to catch up to. Now, you have AI, which the law is trying to catch up to, too.”
