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Any person who, with the intent to coerce, harass, or intimidate, maliciously disseminates or sells any videographic or still image created by any means whatsoever....
The statute states the necessary intent (mens rea) is to "coerce, harass, or intimidate, maliciously disseminates or sells...."
I think who ever released this has a very solid defense that they didn't disseminate it for any of these reasons, they disseminated it because the public has a right to know." There is a pretty solid first amendment argument there.
Also, slightly more nuanced, its really hard to argue that someone circulating photos publicly that were already publicly available is done to "coerce, harass, or intimidate". If you release pictures publicly, how is my re-circulating them malicious?
There is no good argument for a boyfriend sharing with the public private images given to them by their girlfriend. And those cases would be easy to prosecute and prove under this statue. That's just not the case here.
The Second part of the statute is that it says " where such person knows or has reason to know that he is not licensed or authorized to disseminate or sell such videographic or still image"
Again, this is surprising element to me because the terms of use of the website could be drafted in such a way that republishing the pictures is a violation of the T&Cs. They are not. The T&Cs do not say its a violation to republish these photos based on the language I posted above its arguable that other users have a right/license to do so. Better drafted T&Cs could have fixed this but as they are written, its hard to argue that whoever published the photos wasn't authorized to release the photos.
>Paragraph A of the VA revenge porn statute her lawyer cited >is quite explicit on this: > > >"§ 18.2-386.2. Unlawful dissemination or sale of images of >another; penalty. > >A. Any person who, with the intent to coerce, harass, or >intimidate, maliciously disseminates or sells any videographic >or still image created by any means whatsoever that depicts >another person who is totally nude, or in a state of undress >so as to expose the genitals, pubic area, buttocks, or female >breast, where such person knows or has reason to know that he >is not licensed or authorized to disseminate or sell such >videographic or still image is guilty of a Class 1 >misdemeanor. For purposes of this subsection, "another person" >includes a person whose image was used in creating, adapting, >or modifying a videographic or still image with the intent to >depict an actual person and who is recognizable as an actual >person by the person's face, likeness, or other distinguishing >characteristic." > > >I'm not sure I follow your and Legs' comparison to >disseminating everyday news videos and images (and whatever >fair use exceptions apply in certain instances of public >interest/newsworthiness), if the overwhelming majority of >reposted/retweeted news and gossip content isn't pornographic. >It's kinda apples and oranges, no? > > > >>I think it's okay to say that you don't think she should be >>slut shamed or her personal business shouldn't affect her >>public career. I think folks would disagree with you and >>that's about that. >> > >Ya you've mentioned this elsewhere in the post too but I think >I'd argue (and FrankLongo may feel differently, I realize I'm >interjecting in here lol) that while a public figure's sex >life may interest the public (in a "gossip" sense), that >doesn't make it public interest (in a "need to know for the >common good" sense). I understand why some might feel that way >depending on their personal morals, but it's a pretty >problematic assumption. For starters, it's just fact that how >one has sex has very little to do with how one performs a job. >Secondly, it would be next to impossible to ensure fairness >across various sexualities, genders, ages, races and >ethnicities, etc for disclosing. But even beyond all that, >let' say 'Buddy's Law' is enacted somewhere so situations like >this never catch constituents offguard again... How should >such information even be collected?? An appendix in campaign >registration packages where prospective political candidates >must list all sex acts, partners, websites/apps, and media >they've engaged with over the last x amount of years? Idk... >sounds pretty totalitarian.
********** "Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson
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