The first ever elected openly transgender New Hampshire lawmaker is facing criminal charges for allegedly conspiring with her ex-girlfriend to gather sexually explicit photos of children, federal prosecutors announced this week.
“Stacie Marie Laughton, 39, of Nashua, N.H., was charged with one count of sexual exploitation of children – and aiding and abetting. Laughton will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date,” the US Attorney’s office said in a statement on Tuesday.
Laughton was arrested after a forensic investigation revealed over 10,000 text messages shared with her former partner, Lindsay Groves, a former daycare worker, that included sexually explicit images of children that appear to be between three and five years of age, as well as explicit descriptions of sex with each other and children.
Groves took the images between May and June 2022 while employed at Creative Minds daycare in Tyngsborough, Massachusetts. She was arrested and charged with distribution of child pornography and sexual exploitation of children last month. The penalty for the crime is up to 30 years in prison.
Stacie-Marie Laughton is a member of the Democratic Party and the first openly transgender person ever elected to the chamber in 2012. She resigned her position as a state representative before taking the seat, after media uncovered her past conviction for identity fraud and falsifying evidence. Laughton ran again in 2020 and was re-elected in 2022, but resigned in December after being charged with stalking Groves.