Real Life Skin Pics and Arizona Revenge Porn
Episode 38
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Disclaimer: The materials and content within this podcast are intended as general information only and are not to be considered a substitute for professional legal advice or a consultation with a lawyer.
1. Family Law Tip of the Week
If spousal maintenance is at issue in your case, before agreeing to pay (or get paid) a certain amount, be sure to consult with a qualified CPA to fully understand the tax ramifications of the award. Part of your consideration should be your tax bracket once the court orders the monthly amount!
2. Real Life Skin Pics and Arizona Revenge Porn
Today’s guest is Ruth Carter of The Carter Law Firm in Phoenix, Arizona. Ruth has written several best-selling books and specializes in intellectual property law, internet law, business formation and contracts. In this episode, Ruth talks with The Family Law Insider about revenge porn.
Revenge porn usually happens when one partner comes into possession of intimate photos or videos of an ex, then disseminates this information to get revenge. While revenge porn may have been around for years, it has become more of an issue since people are now able to easily produce and share photos and videos (thanks to the internet and smartphones). Once a compromising image or video has been put out into the internet world, it could be a challenge to “delete” it, especially if someone has already downloaded or saved it.
An Arizona revenge porn law has just been passed (HB 2515). This law makes it a crime to publish revenge porn without the other person’s consent. Once on the books, the law will be codified as A.R.S. Section 13-1425. The crime will be a felony, punishable by jail, prison and/or a fine. The law is expected to go into effect on July 24, 2014.
Currently, there is a cyber-harassment law on the Arizona books. With that particular law, there has to be a specific intent to harass (or you have to know that what you are doing is harassing). In contrast, with revenge porn, you simply have to post an intimate photo or video (even if you don’t have an intent to harass or hurt someone) without the other’s consent.
Keep in mind that as the law is written, you don’t necessarily have to put an intimate photo online. Distribution to someone else (offline) might be enough! One way to get out of a potential charge of revenge porn is to show that someone else had access to your account, computer, phone, etc. Be aware that if you post revenge porn from your home, that is traceable via the IP address.
Under the law, there are differences in punishment depending upon whether the person in the photo or the film is “recognizable.” This raises questions as to how you can prove a person is recognizable (if the person’s face isn’t showing). One way the state might build the case is through circumstantial meta-data. In other words, it MIGHT be possible to show a person IS recognizable even if their face isn’t showing.
In terms of family law cases, Ruth believes the Arizona revenge porn law could become relevant as related to emotional abuse. Revenge porn will likely add a new layer to outcomes in Arizona child custody cases in situations of domestic violence, as well as in cases where new partners are involved.
Warning: If you choose to take intimate videos and photos, do it on your own device and never let your device out of your control!
Warning: Don’t send anything you wouldn’t want to end up on the front page of the newspaper, because it really could end up there!
Other Legal Implications Related to Intimate Photos
The person who takes the photo or video holds the copyright. That means they get to dictate where things are distributed. Having the copyright (to intimate photos and videos) might be enough to have an image taken down. Understand – just because you are in the photo doesn’t mean you own the copyright on the photo.
Keep in mind that if you are in a photo or video where you had an expectation of privacy, you may not have a copyright claim, but you might have a claim for invasion of privacy. Invasion of privacy laws vary from state-to-state. However, generally, if there is an expectation of privacy, it might not be too difficult to convince a fact-finder that the photo should not be widely distributed.
It should be interesting to see how this law unfolds. Stay tuned…
In the meantime, if you would like to see more of Ruth Carter, contact her at carterlawaz.com and on Twitter @rbcarter.
3. Family Law News
According to a new study, if a family member or friend gets a divorce, you are 75% more likely to get a divorce. Matt talks about this in the news this week!
Many thanks to http://www.freesfx.co.uk for the sound byte!
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