ORLANDO, Fla. – Students at Lake Nona High School said Tuesday afternoon most of their classmates were still talking about a Twitter page that was sharing nude pictures of students after Local 6 broke the story Monday.
Students said it's happened before. The latest Twitter page, "The Plug" @NonaSecret, was removed and the account was suspended as of Monday morning after students said pictures had been posted to the site all weekend.
Students said the Twitter page asks students to direct message pictures of their classmates.
A screenshot of @NonaSecret sent to Local 6 by a student shows a question posted under the page title: "Have anything you have on anyone you'd like to share with us?"
Another screenshot reads: "The Plug! ALL SECRETES COME OUT! // DM Picture & Rumors."
Students posted replies largely condemning the pictures.
"If she's a sophomore, I believe you just posted a picture of a minor, which would be illegal," read one posting.
"I don't think anyone enjoys seeing one of their friends being exposed on social media for everyone to see," read another posting. "It's 100 percent messed up."
"People think it'd be seniors, but it's actually going down through freshmen," said senior Josshua Velazquez. "It'll carry on through your whole high school."
Some students said the pictures were still being shared via the chat app Kik, even though the Twitter page is suspended.
"In one of my classes there was a huddle of a bunch of guys looking on iPads, swiping on pictures, talking about whatever happened yesterday," said student Brianna Ruiz.
Students who said they had seen the nude pictures said some are of actual students while others are fakes, photo-shopped or incorrectly identifying students.
"People are really upset about it, because you can actually pick out who the people are that had pictures up because you can see them in the hallway trying not to make eye contact with anyone," said ninth grader Kevin Rice.
On Monday, Orange County Public Schools spokesperson Shari Bobinski said the school has nothing to do with the picture sharing and that there isn't much the school can do to prevent students from taking pictures and posting them.?
"Parents have been sharing with the school their contact with law enforcement, and if needed, the school resource officer is ready to assist law enforcement," said OCPS spokesperson Shari Bobinski.
On Tuesday, Bobinski did not return Local 6 emails.
Students said the picture sharing has been so distracting that they are no longer focused on their schoolwork or testing.
"This is actually a really big distraction, to be honest," said Rice. "It's the talk of the hallways, talk of the classroom."
Orlando police said at least one parent had filed a police report. Detectives spoke with the students involved, but no arrests were made because the families decided not to prosecute.
Local 6 legal analyst Luis Calderon said taking, sharing, and possessing pictures of minors is child pornography, but police can use discretion when investigating a situation like this.
"This is a tag that extends a lifetime. It doesn't end when the sentence ends, it doesn't end when the person has completed the probation or prison time," said Calderon. "It is a lifetime sentence of being a registered sex offender."
"When you deal with minors you have to be more sensitive to their future, their lifetime, their impact, because they don't have the maturity to understand the consequences of their actions," said Calderon.
Calderon suggested the school warn all students of the consequences of taking or sharing nude pictures.
"If we don't let kids know where the lines are drawn, we can't necessarily blame them 100 percent when they cross it," said Calderon. "So I think the first step is to let them know here's where the line is drawn. The school is on notice."
Parent Bob Rice said when he spoke to the front office at Lake Nona High School Tuesday afternoon, staff claimed to know nothing of the picture sharing.
"At the very least I would have expected the resource officers, or the school to make some type of announcement to make the children delete it or find who's circulating," said Bob Rice. "Lay down some kind of guideline that says if you send something it's not correct, delete it from your phone and if you have any information come talk to us."