A bill criminalizing ‘revenge porn’, or the act of posting sexually explicit images of someone online without that person’s consent, is heading to the Governor’s desk to be signed into law.
House Bill 71 intent is to crack down on ‘revenge porn’ images often used to humiliate the person photographed or turn a profit for the person posting the photos online. Penalties for posting such an image would be a misdemeanor for a first offense or a Class D felony for each subsequent offense. If the image was posted for profit, the penalties would be ramped up to a Class D felony for a first offense and a more serious Class C felony for subsequent offenses.
Perpetrators could also have civil cases brought against them, where $1,000 in damages could be assessed under House Bill 71 for each image each day it remains online after a request has been made to remove it. The bill also prohibits an online entity from demanding payment to remove an image.
The bill received final passage in the House Thursday and now heads to Governor Matt Bevin’s desk.