A teen boy from Manassas City, Virginia, is facing felony charges in a sexting case, but that's not the worst part. The boy's lawyer told The Washington Post that he may be forced to show his erection to the local police.
The suspect, 17, faces two charges for manufacturing and distributing child pornography after exchanging sexually explicit photos and videos with his then-girlfriend, who was 15 at the time. The girl, whose mother filed the complaint, has not been charged.
After obtaining a search warrant for the teen's iPhone and iPad, police took the suspect to juvenile jail. Jessica Harbeson Foster, the boy's lawyer, told the Post that Assistant Commonwealth Attorney Claiborne Richardson told her that if the client did not plead guilty, police would get another search warrant "for pictures of his erect penis" to compare to the photos on his phone. The Post suggests that prosecutors and police may go as far as to bring him to a hospital for an injection to see his erection.
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"This is a 17-year-old who goes to school every day, plays football, has never been in trouble with the law before," Foster told the Post. "Now he's saddled with two felonies and the implication that he's a sexual predator."
Previously, the suspect's aunt told NBC Washington that police "took him to a room and took pictures of his genitalia." The new warrant would be a step further, with photos of his erection. The suspect's guardian ad litem called the warrant "effectively child abuse."
The suspect was allowed to visit family out of town but is due back in court in August. If convicted, he could be forced to register as a sex offender and be imprisoned again.
