The mayor of a small town on Maryland’s Eastern Shore violated the state’s “revenge porn” laws by posting nude images of a former romantic partner on the internet without her consent, according to the state prosecutor’s office.
The Cambridge mayor has been charged with 50 counts of distributing explicit images of a former romantic partner without her consent on Reddit in April and May.
Prosecutors say the youthful mayor posted nude images with sexually explicit and racist captions on a number of forums under a variety of usernames.
The woman told authorities about the posts in May. She said the man was the only person with whom she had shared the photos. Prosecutors said they connected the posts to an internet protocol address at the man’s home.
The mayor’s alleged conduct violated Maryland’s statute on posting nude or sexualized photos and other visual media without first obtaining consent.
He was released on his own recognizance after an appearance in Dorchester County Circuit Court.
The statute – – MD Criminal Law Code Sec. 3-809
Maryland law forbids the nonconsensual distribution of a private visual representation of another which exposes their intimate body parts or displays them engaged in sexual activity, with the intent to harm, harass, intimidate, threaten or coerce the person depicted.
Almost all of the states have laws against posting revenge porn. Maryland’s revenge porn law went into effect in 2014. Today, 48 states have criminalized nonconsensual pornography, according to Mary Anne Franks, the president and legislative and tech policy director at the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative.
What prosecutors have to prove
Prosecutors in Maryland must prove that the person who shared the photos intended to cause serious emotional distress. Some say this is a tough standard to meet. One expert told the New York Times that the “emotional distress” standard protects people who say they posted photos for profit or because they didn’t think the individual in the photo would care.
However, in this instance, some have speculated that because of the number of postings and statements that accompanied the posts, prosecutors might have a relatively easy time in proving that the politician acted with malicious intent.
Penalties
The mayor faces a fine of up to $5,000 fine and two years in prison for each count. He could be fined as much as $250,000 and be sentenced to 100 years in prison.
Surge in revenge porn
Reports of revenge porn and online harassment have surged during the pandemic, according to a report in the New York Times.
Maronick Law, LLC is open during the pandemic and will continue to meet your Glen Burnie, Annapolis, Baltimore, Essex, Ocean City, Towson, White Marsh revenge porn criminal defense attorney needs. If you’ve been the victim of Maryland revenge porn or need an attorney to defend your rights if accused of revenge porn, you should talk to an Ocean City revenge porn lawyer.
If you have access to Zoom, we can meet with you remotely. The consultation is free. You can contact Thomas Maronick on his cellphone at 202.288.0167, the law office at 410.934.3007 or via the website.
