District attorney calls mother's alleged pornographic retaliation 'heinous'

SALT LAKE CITY — Salt Lake District Attorney Lohra Miller calls it "heinous conduct."

"I can't think of a case to compare it to," she said.

Friday, Miller spoke strongly against the alleged actions of a 37-year-old woman accused of making fliers that depicted a 13-year-old naked girl engaged in bestiality and passing out those fliers at the girl's middle school. The 13-year-old girl's school picture was digitally superimposed onto a nude adult woman's body. Miller called the images "very graphic" and "very realistic." At the bottom of the flier were several derogatory words directed toward the victim.

Danette Stark was charged this week with 18 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, all second-degree felonies. The Photoshopped images constitute child pornography under state law, Miller said.

Stark is accused of going to Northwest Middle School, 1730 W. 1700 North, on May 24, with a stack of fliers and putting some in a girls' restroom and others in certain lockers.

The woman told police she "created and distributed the fliers to retaliate for perceived wrongs" by the teenage girl, court documents say.

During a news conference Friday, Miller declined to talk about a motive in the case or say what the 13-year-old girl reportedly did to spark such a vile and extreme response.

"It's irrelevant," said Miller, who noted she did not want to revictimize the girl. "The brochure is so heinous. You have enough to deal with as a 13-year-old girl, much less this type of conduct."

Residents in Stark's neighborhood Friday said Stark has a daughter who is about the same age as the victim and who goes to the same school.

A person claiming to be the victim's mother posted a note on the Deseret News' comment board, at deseretnews.com, claiming that Stark was upset because the victim's mother did not allow the victim to be "best friends" with Stark.

Another person e-mailed the Deseret News, claiming to be a friend of Stark. That person said Stark was framed and said there was more to the story than has yet been told. The e-mail said Stark's daughter and the victim had a serious falling out during the school year.

A mother and former schoolteacher herself, Miller said she couldn't fathom seeking revenge against someone in this manner.

"As a mother, this is not something I would ever consider doing," she said Friday.