California 'Revenge Porn' Victims Receive More Time To Report Abuse After SB 23 Signed Into Law
OAKLAND (CBS SF) -- Victims of so-called "revenge porn" will have more time to report the abuse following enactment of a new law, Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O'Malley said Thursday.
O'Malley said in a prepared statement that Senate Bill 23, authored by Sen. Susan Rubio (D-West Covina) and sponsored by O'Malley's office, was signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The new law extends the statute of limitations for invasion of privacy cases to one year from the time that the victim discovers any images or intimate materials posted, instead a year from their posting.
"The posting of intimate or private photos and videos without consent is not only invasive, and turning increasingly common, but a form of image-based sexual abuse," said O'Malley in a prepared statement. "This new law will ensure that California can protect victims of this horrible crime.
Cyber revenge or revenge porn involves the online posting of private or intimate photos of another person without the person's knowledge or consent. The photos, in many cases taken over the course of a relationship and originally with the consent by the victim, are posted on social media to shame, harass, and intimidate the victim after a breakup.
"Perpetrators of domestic violence sometimes use the release of private, intimate images as another tool of coercive control," said Senator Rubio in a statement. "It's an attempt to shame and intimidate the victim, with the plan to provoke long-lasting trauma in their personal and professional lives. I want to thank Governor Newsom for signing this bill, and my colleagues for their support. This will give victims, who often don't find out until much later that the images have been released, more time to seek justice."
