City lawmakers are looking to crack down on “revenge porn” — making it a crime to pass on explicit pictures of someone without their consent.
A bill that will be introduced in the City Council this week would hit vengeful exes with up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine for posting naked pictures online or texting and e-mailing them to other people.
The prohibition would also apply to photos and videos of a sex act passed out against the subject’s will, and intended to cause emotional or economic harm.
“Leaking naked pictures of someone without their permission is despicable, but our laws haven’t caught up with technology to make ‘revenge porn’ a crime,” said Councilman Rory Lancman (D-Queens), who is sponsoring the measure along with Dan Garodnick (D-Manhattan).
New York has a state law barring secretly recording sexually explicit images — but it doesn’t apply if someone willingly exchanges sexy shots that are later given out without their consent.
“Life is a nightmare for victims of revenge porn, as relationships are damaged, careers are put in jeopardy and online harassment is a daily battle,” Garodnick said. “This legislation takes a stand against this disgusting violation of privacy and sends a strong message that this behavior is unacceptable in New York City.”
The bill contains an exception if the images are of political, journalistic or artistic interest, or if they’re handed over in response to a law enforcement request.
A similar bill has been introduced at the state level, but has not passed.
