OAN Staff Blake Wolf
1:05 PM – Friday, November 7, 2025
Former New Hampshire Democrat Rep. Stacie Laughton, a biological male originally named Barry Charles Laughton Jr. who now identifies as a transgender woman, recently pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the sexual exploitation of children.
In 2012, the Democrat was lauded as the first openly transgender person elected to a U.S. state legislature, and he was elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives three times — 2012, 2020, and 2022 — but resigned each time. Laughton’s political career came crashing down following his 2002 arrest for domestic violence and criminal mischief, in addition to a 2003 sexual assault charge.
Meanwhile, on Monday, Laughton also pleaded guilty in a Boston federal court to several more recent charges after Laughton’s female partner, Lindsay Groves, admitted to sending him sexually explicit photos of children — child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Groves is accused of sending Laughton numerous explicit photos of male and female children, with the victims appearing to be between the ages of three to five years old. Groves had been working at a Tyngsborough, Massachusetts daycare from 2022 to 2023 when she took the photos, according to federal investigators. The CSAM case kicked off in June 2023 after a tip to Nashua police.
According to a report by The Union Leader, citing court documents, Laughton requested the photos from Groves, and the two discussed what kind of sexual abuse they wanted to take part in and photograph in relation to the kids. Over a thousand text exchanges are highlighted as evidence, detailing the depravity of the pair.
“It is alleged that, between May 2022 and June 2023, Groves took nude images of children at the day care and sent the photos to Laughton,” the Department of Justice wrote in the criminal complaint. “Specifically, Groves allegedly 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 send the photos to the individual via text message.”
Both Laughton and Groves were indicted on three counts of sexual exploitation of children, and Groves is also being charged with one count of distribution of child sexual abuse images, according to the outlet.
The disgraced New Hampshire Democrat House member now faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 30 years in prison, plus potential supervised release and fines up to $250,000.
Laughton previously told patch.com that he was running for his seat because he wanted to see a “difference in my community in the areas of homelessness, social services, mental health reform, drug den alcohol criminal justice reform along with adjusting how we treat felons in the state to allow them to get better job opportunities and housing opportunities,” adding that he desired to “allow them a chance at a better life and to become fully contributing members of society.”
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