A former substitute teacher in the West Tallahatchie School District has been sentenced on federal and state charges of sexual battery and child exploitation involving a 15-year-old student at the school where she taught.
Jakalyn Danielle “KK” Moore, 24, of Southaven, had a busy day on Oct. 27, attending separate sentencing proceedings in U.S. District Court at Aberdeen and Tallahatchie County Circuit Court in Sumner.
She was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Glen Davidson to serve 15 years for sexual exploitation of a child, followed by 10 years of federal post-release supervision. Under a federal plea agreement, two related counts of sexual exploitation of a child, dating to December 2023, were dismissed.
Moore was sentenced by Circuit Judge Smith Murphey V to 25 years, with 15 to be served, followed by 10 years of state post-release supervision, for one count of sexual battery by a person in position of trust and authority and one count of child exploitation. Moore also was ordered to pay an assessment of $2,000 to the Victims of Human Trafficking and Commercial Sexual Exploitation Fund, $441.50 in court costs and $100 to a crime victim fund.
Federal and state penalties of incarceration will run concurrently and the time will be served in federal prison.
She will also be required to register as a sex offender.
The Mississippi Attorney General’s Office investigated and prosecuted the state case, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI investigated and prosecuted the federal case.
Said state Attorney General Lynn Fitch, “Exploiting children that you are responsible to care for is a serious violation of trust. I am grateful to my team for their hard work investigating and prosecuting this predator, as well as the FBI for their partnership on this case. It is my hope that closing this chapter will help the victims and their families on their journey to healing and recovery.”
On Dec. 4, 2024, Moore was charged by a federal grand jury with three counts of sexual exploitation of a child dating to Dec. 13, Dec. 19 and Dec. 20, 2023. The alleged victims were identified as "Minor 1," "Minor 2" and "Minor 3."
The federal indictment charged that Moore "did employ, use, persuade, induce, and entice a minor ... to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing any visual depiction of such conduct if that visual depiction was produced for transmitting using materials that have been transported in and affecting interstate and foreign commerce by any means, including by computer."
In a motion filed later by Assistant Federal Public Defender Merrill K. Nordstrom, the legal language of the indictment was simplified with Nordstrom writing, "Ms. Moore is charged by indictment with three counts of production of child pornography."
An arrest warrant was issued for Moore on Dec. 5, 2024, and she was arrested on Dec. 17, 2024.
Moore was arraigned and entered a plea of not guilty on Dec. 20, 2024.
On July 7, 2025, Moore formally changed her plea to guilty under a plea agreement with federal prosecutors that saw two of the three federal charges against her dismissed.
