Crime

Stacie-Marie Laughton previously pleaded guilty to goading her former partner into taking nude photos of children at a Massachusetts daycare. 

By Abby Patkin

June 19, 2026 | 1:02 PM

3 minutes to read

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A former New Hampshire state representative has been sentenced to more than 33 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to goading her former partner into taking sexually explicit photos of children at a Tyngsborough daycare. 

Stacie-Marie Laughton, 42, spoke “extensively” in text messages in the spring of 2023 about “potential or fantasized sexual contact with kids,” federal prosecutors wrote in their sentencing memorandum. Laughton, New Hampshire’s first openly transgender elected official, pleaded guilty last fall to three counts of aiding and abetting the sexual exploitation of children.

Laughton’s former intimate partner, Lindsay Groves, 40, also pleaded guilty to taking and sending nude pictures of children at her workplace, Creative Minds Early Learning Center. 

Prosecutors say Groves took advantage of routine bathroom breaks and diaper changes to snap the photos, which she then texted to Laughton. A forensic review of the pair’s cellphones revealed more than 10,000 messages sent over approximately one month in 2023, including several explicit photos of children who appeared to be between the ages of 3 and 5. 

“The conduct at issue here is abhorrent,” prosecutors wrote in Laughton’s sentencing memo. “These were children who were not yet fully potty trained, not old enough to even go to the bathroom themselves, and not fully verbal. This was not a ‘crime of opportunity’ in the sense in which we typically think of that concept. This was planned, it was strategized, and it was carried out for the sexual gratification of one or both defendants in this case.” 

Groves was sentenced to nearly 22 years in prison earlier this month.  

While Groves was aware she was doing something wrong, Laughton’s “voice was, to put it mildly, the more prominent one in the ongoing conversation regarding the sexual exploitation of the victims in this case,” prosecutors alleged, noting the ex-lawmaker’s messages showed a “borderline obsessive focus on sex.” 

According to previous court filings, Laughton mentioned, showed, or forwarded the explicit images to two other adults, texting one of them, “I don’t like that I have these but I wanted to show you the proof. I am not a kid pervert.”

However, prosecutors say Laughton failed to mention her own role in the crimes and only reported the photos in an apparent attempt to punish Groves for ending their relationship.

It wasn’t Laughton’s first brush with the law; she resigned her seat in the New Hampshire House of Representatives in December 2022 after she was arrested and accused of stalking and harassment. Laughton had previously won a seat in the New Hampshire Legislature in 2012 but resigned before taking office after a prior felony conviction came to light. 

A sentencing memorandum from Laughton’s defense attorney, Derege B. Demissie, acknowledged the former lawmaker is “complex” but said she came from a “complicated” upbringing that involved sexual abuse, developmental delays, self-harm, substance use, and several inpatient mental health treatments. Demissie did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday. 

Prosecutors, meanwhile, argued that Laughton’s background did not mitigate the severity of her crimes. 

“The defendant’s criminal history reflects a theme: entitlement, aggression, and manipulation,” they wrote in their sentencing memo, citing a string of incidents that included threats, credit card fraud, and false 911 calls and texts. In one instance, prosecutors said, Laughton even called 911 for an ambulance when a taxi was unavailable. 

Prosecutors sought a 40-year prison sentence, noting that Laughton had occupied a position of public trust as an elected official, also holding herself out as a reverend and local radio personality. 

“These aspirations reveal delusions of grandeur that are completely at odds with her demonstrated pattern of criminality, manipulation, and inability to take responsibility for her actions,” they argued. “She must be held responsible for the damage that she has done.”