A young man living in the State College area faces three misdemeanor counts of “unlawful dissemination of an intimate image” and a count of harassment, which is also potentially a misdemeanor.
Police claim the man used a website that many people also use to post “revenge porn” against their former boyfriends or girlfriends. A couple of years ago, when the man was either 18 or 19, he allegedly took pictures his then girlfriend had sent him and, on two occasions, uploaded those picture up on the website.
There were 24 photographs, and, according to police, they had inappropriate comments associated with them. The website allows its patrons to “rate” the pictures posted on the website. The site allegedly recorded 100,000 views each time the photos were posted, although it is not clear how many different people supposedly saw these photos. According to police, the photos on the website included the woman’s name and age.
The woman contacted police last summer when a friend informed her that there were photos of her online. Police claim the young man whom they arrested confessed to the woman that he had posted the photographs, photographs which the woman says were intended to be private. According to police, they also found evidence in the man’s home after executing a search warrant.
If anything, this case serves as an important warning, particularly to the college students who live here, against creating or posting “revenge porn,” even if one’s former partner is of age and consented to the taking of the photographs or video. Even the misdemeanor charges related to “revenge porn” can carry with them long-term consequences.
However, someone who is charged with such crimes may have one several valid legal defenses and should strongly consider speaking with an experienced Pennsylvania defense attorney.
Source: Centre Daily Times, “Man posted ex-girlfriend’s nude photos online for revenge, police say,” Shawn Anbarelli, Jan. 6, 2017