PNA Law - Northern Virginia Criminal Lawyers
A bill introduced to the Commonwealth of Virginia House today would make it a crime to distribute or sell sexually explicit pictures or video of another person without their consent and with the intent to cause emotional distress. This type of distribution is nicknamed “revenge porn. “
Proposed Bill
Northern Virginia Del. Marcus Simon (D) wants to make it a crime to publish any type of sexually explicit images through any form. The bill, House Bill 49, would criminalize this act. Anyone convicted of such a crime would be guilty of a class one misdemeanor and would face up to one year in jail as well as a $2,500 fine for their actions.
According to the bill, it would include any videotape, photograph, film or still image or reproduction depicting another person who is totally nude, in a state of undress or engaged in sexual conduct without the subject’s permission.
A second bill introduced would allow “revenge porn” victims to seek civil damages of at least $10,000. Simon presented the bill during a Tuesday morning press conference with a woman who said she was the victim of her ex-boyfriend posting such images of her. A civil suit could proceed whether a person is convicted or not of the proposed crime. Both New Jersey and California have already made this practice illegal.
http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?141+sum+HB49