Revenge Porn Law Indicts Los Angeles Native

On Monday, the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office confirmed that a man who posted a topless photo of his ex-girlfriend to her employer’s Facebook page will be the first person to be convicted under California’s “revenge porn” law.

36-year-old Noe Iniguez has been sentenced to one year in jail, 36 months of probation and an order to attend domestic violence counselling after being additionally guilty to violating a restraining order.

In March, Iniguez uploaded a topless photograph of his ex-girlfriend to her employer’s Facebook, in addition to calling her a “drunk” and a “slut”, and urging for her unemployment. He used an alias in attempt to disguise his true identity. His ex-girlfriend has previously obtained two restraining orders against him after the breakup of their four-year relationship ended in 2011 in a slew of abusive and harassing text messages.

The law, which passed last October, was pushed through by Senator Anthony Cannella (R-Ceres). In an email with the Huffington Post, he said, “As technology evolves, it is important that government act to protect our citizens from new types of crime, and while I'm sad these crimes exist, I am happy to see my legislation doing what it's supposed to do -- protecting victims”.

California is not the only state to bring these laws to legislature. Although California has enacted a “relatively tough law”, which requires prosecutors prove the offender intended the action to cause emotional damage to the victim, other states have also attempted to create “revenge porn” laws. California has made the offense a misdemeanor.

In fact, Arizona has just suspended their own law until it is re-written, because it originally tried to ban all uploads that depict anyone “in a state of nudity or engaged in specific sexual activities” unless given explicit consent. However, this has seen a large backlash primarily from journalists reporting human rights abuses.