BERNARDS TOWNSHIP — Students could face criminal charges and other penalties if they're found with nude photos of classmates on their phones Bernards Township Superintendent Nick Markarian said in a letter to parents Friday.

The school district and police set up a short-term amnesty after learning students had come to school with such nude photos, Markarian said in the letter,

published in full by NJ101.5.com

. Authorities gave students and their families until Sunday to address and delete such photos without penalties.

"Effective Monday, May 12, 2014 any students involved in the behaviors described above will be subject to the application of the law," Markarian wrote.

He said the situation "has created a host of unfortunate consequences for everyone involved." The educational environment has been disrupted, and parents, administrators and counselors are "all working overtime" to address the situation.

The school district will be counseling and, as appropriate, disciplining students involved, he said. Police became involved because the images amount to child pornography, he said.

"Our goal is that this sort of behavior never occurs in our school district," the superintendent wrote. Any student found to be involved will be subject to a minimum five-day suspension as well as to the "application of the law," he wrote.

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The superintendent's letter didn't specify at which school the images were found, but

News 12

and the

Bernardsville News

both report they were at William Annin Middle School.

In his letter, Markarian asks parents for help dealing with the situation. He said they should talk to their children about the "serious and possibly long term social, emotional, and legal ramifications that can accompany situations like we are dealing with right now." Children should be reminded once images are out on the Web, there's no calling them back.

He also asks parents to review any digital photos their children may have on their phones, in their social media accounts or in other electronic storage, and delete any inappropriate content.

The Bernardsville News reports that as of Monday, police had received eight to 10 phones from students.

NJ.com left messages for the superintendent and to police Monday, and is awaiting returned calls.

News 12 asked its Facebook followers Monday if students should suffer criminal penalities for "sexting."

"How bout people stop worrying about wut (sic) kids do on their phones and worry about how they do on tests and school work," Justin Natal wrote in response.

Stephen Handrik said charges are a way for the justice system to extort children and their parents for money "Teach kids about the outcomes of such activity. People need a chance to learn before they are put into the crippling system of justice," he wrote.

And Jennifer Anne Hentz offered up her own solution: "CHILDREN shouldn't have phones so they can sext in the first place!"