WASHINGTON (AP) — The D.C. Council is considering two bills that would criminalize what’s known as “revenge porn.”
The council’s public safety committee will hold a hearing Friday on the bills. Although some of the details differ, both would make it a crime punishable by up to 5 years in prison to distribute sexually explicit photos or videos taken for private use during a romantic relationship. The bills were introduced by councilmembers Muriel Bowser and Mary Cheh.
Thirteen states have passed legislation addressing revenge porn over the past two years.
Among the witnesses scheduled to testify at Friday’s hearing is Mary Anne Franks, a law professor at the University of Miami and the vice president of the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, a group that advocates for an end to revenge porn.
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