JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – A federal trial this week involving a former Corinth superintendent tied to a deepfake case has highlighted concerns about artificial intelligence and how quickly the law can keep up.
Investigators say a former Corinth Middle School teacher used artificial intelligence to create deepfake videos using students’ images. The girls never knew. Court records show they did not learn about the allegations for months after the teacher was allowed to resign.
“The community was furious,” said Corinth Police Chief Landon Tucker.
Mississippi updates laws to address AI threats
Rep. Jansen Owen said he was alerted to this new kind of threat at a conference a few years ago.
“They can take a picture of my child from Facebook and morph that child into sexually explicit images,” Owen said. “And it’s so realistic. They’re still even victimizing children, even though they never even touched the children.”
The former Corinth teacher faces both federal and state charges. Mississippi lawmakers updated state law in 2024. Owen added language to criminalize AI-generated child sexual abuse material, so prosecutors are not limited to federal charges.
“Prior to the statute, child pornography you had to identify a victim,” Owen said. “So it had to be actual photographs of a child engaged in sexual acts to convict somebody of possessing child porn.”
That addresses consequences for the perpetrators. But lawmakers have also been weighing what is available for the victims.
“This is not theoretical,” said Sen. Bradford Blackmon. “These are real kids in real classrooms facing real consequences from fake content.”
Sen. Bradford Blackmon proposed the Mississippians’ Right to Name, Likeness and Voice Act this session. That legislation did not make it across the finish line. Owen said he too has attempted to get similar bills passed.
“I think there should be a civil right of action available to these victims whose images have been used to do that,” Owen said.
Lawmakers have also in recent years added a child grooming law meant to let investigators step in sooner, before a predator ever meets a child. And the penalties are increased when the suspect is in a position of trust, like a teacher or youth leader.
As technology keeps evolving, so do the threats. The legislature is working to keep up with the safety of children at the top of its mind.
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