Day care worker took nude photos of children in bathroom, sent them to her ex, feds say

Thousands of text messages exchanged between a day care employee and her former intimate partner included nude photos of children and discussions of performing sex acts with children, federal prosecutors said.

Lindsay Groves, 38, of Hudson, New Hampshire, took explicit images of children under her care during their bathroom breaks at Creative Minds in Tyngsborough, where she worked as a childcare teacher, according to prosecutors.

She sent the images to Stacie Marie Laughton, 39, of Nashua, New Hampshire, who officials said asked Groves to capture them, court documents show.

Laughton is a former New Hampshire state representative.

In text messages, the pair discussed their desire to abuse the children at the day care and debated whether “God” approves of their sexual interests, according to an affidavit.

“Do you think we still have a place in heaven?” Laughton asks Groves in one message, the affidavit says.

“Yes god is ok with it and we will still go to heaven,” Groves said in reply, according to the affidavit.

Groves and Laughton were indicted on three counts of sexual exploitation of children, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced in a July 27 news release. Groves is also facing a charge of distributing child pornography, officials said.

At a court appearance July 28, Laughton pleaded not guilty to the charges, records show. Groves will appear in court at a later date, prosecutors said.

McClatchy News contacted attorneys representing Groves and Laughton on July 28 for comment and didn’t receive an immediate response. McClatchy News also contacted Creative Minds on July 28 for comment and was awaiting a response.

“The conduct alleged today is horrific and inexplicable,” U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy said in a statement. “This case is a reminder of how critical it is that we continue to focus on people who prey on our most vulnerable population, children.”

Groves is accused of taking exploitative images of children as young as age 3 between May 2022 and June 2023 while she was assigned to the preschool room at Creative Minds, according to release and affidavit.

The center’s preschool room is for children nearly 3 years old up to 4 years old, the affidavit says.

Laughton is accused of showing exploitative images of children that Groves captured to other adults, according to the affidavit and the release.

If convicted on the charges of sexual exploitation of children, both women would face between 15 and 30 years in prison, the release said.

As for the charge of distribution of child pornography, Groves could face at least five years and up to 20 years in prison if convicted, prosecutors said.

In 2012, Laughton was “believed to be the first transgender person elected to a state legislature,” the Associated Press reported. She stepped down, however, before she officially took office because she had convictions in 2008 related to identity fraud and faking evidence, according to the news outlet.

She was re-elected as a New Hampshire state representative in 2022 but resigned in December after she was arrested on charges in connection with stalking Groves, according to the Associated Press.

Anyone with “questions, concerns or information regarding this case should call 617-748-3274,” the release said.

All charging documents and victim resources, can be viewed here.

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