Massachusetts daycare worker sentenced for taking nude images of children in her care, sending them to former lawmaker

BOSTON – According to the Massachusetts Department of Justice, a New Hampshire woman, formerly employed at a daycare in Tyngsborough, Mass., and her former intimate partner have pleaded guilty to child exploitation and child pornography charges.

Lindsay Groves, 40, of Hudson, N.H., was sentenced to 22 years in prison after pleading guilty to three counts of sexual exploitation of children and one count of distribution of child pornography.

Stacie Marie Laughton, 41, of Nashua, N.H., a former New Hampshire State Representative, pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual exploitation of children and is expected to be sentenced next week, according to the Union Leader.

Groves and Laughton were arrested and charged by criminal complaint in June 2023 and July 2023, respectively. They were both subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2023.

Groves worked at Creative Minds located in Tyngsborough, Mass. Between May 2022 and June 2023, Groves took nude images of children at the day care and sent the photos to Laughton, with whom she was previously in an intimate relationship. Specifically, Groves used natural bathroom breaks for the children (routine diaper/pull-up changes prior to “naptime”) to take multiple photos of the prepubescent children in a private bathroom and then sent the photos to Laughton via text message.

Forensic review of Grove’s and Laughton’s cellphones revealed over 10,000 text messages between them during an approximate one-month period in 2023. These messages included discussion about, and transfer of, explicit photographs that Groves had taken of children while employed at Creative Minds – including at least four sexually explicit images of children who appear to be approximately three to five years old.

All minor victims involved in this matter have been identified and their families have been contacted by law enforcement.

United States Attorney Leah Foley; Michael Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; and Nashua (N.H.) Police Chief Kevin Rourke made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Hampshire; Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office; and the Hudson, N.H. Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica L. Soto and Anne Paruti of the Major Crimes Unit are prosecuting the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.