MOUNT CLEMENS, Mich. – Three Chesterfield Township teens have been sentenced to probation after pleading guilty to charges in connection to a Twitter picture of a 15-year-old girl involved in a sex act.
Ryan Modaffare, Gregory Kwapik and Nicholas Kelly, all 17 years old, were charged as adults.
Modaffare pleaded guilty to distributing and/or promoting child sexual abusive activity.
Kwapik pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal sexual conduct.
Kelly pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal sexual conduct and distributing and/or promoting child sexual abusive activity.
They were each sentenced Wednesday to three years of probation under the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act, which allows youth who plead guilty to a crime to be placed in prison or on probation without a conviction to avoid a criminal record. They were also ordered to not have a cellphone for three years. They can ask permission to use one after the first year.
They also cannot have any contact with each other or the victim and will undergo drug and alcohol testing.
What happened
The Macomb County Sheriff's Office said the picture showed the girl, who is a student at L'Anse Creuse High School North in Macomb Township, involved in a sexual act. The picture was taken at the girl's home in Macomb Township around Thanksgiving. It was taken without her knowledge, according to the Sheriff's Office.
The alleged crimes happened when four 17-year-old boys went to her home. Two of them engaged in a sexual act with her and a third one took a photo of it. He sent the photo to others and it eventually was posted to a L'Anse Creuse student's Twitter account.
"It was tweeted to a student who took at look at it and actually did the right thing -- went to the school administration and said, 'Look at what I just received,' and the school immediately called us," said Sheriff Anthony Wickersham.
Previous report: Macomb teens' sexting could lead to child porn charges
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