A Texas jury has granted a woman a historic $1.2 billion in damages after determining that she was a victim of revenge porn. Identified in court documents only by the initials DL, the woman filed a harassment lawsuit against her former boyfriend in 2022. The suit claimed that he posted private photos of her online as an act of “public shaming” following their breakup.
Her legal team hailed the settlement as a victory for victims of “image-based sexual abuse”. Bradford Gilde, the lead trial lawyer, remarked that even though the judgment might not be fully recovered, the compensatory verdict restores DL’s reputation.
Originally requesting $100 million in damages, the lawyers emphasized the aim of sending a strong message against such malicious activities.
Court documents reveal that DL and her former boyfriend started dating in 2016, during which she shared intimate photos. After their 2021 breakup, the defendant allegedly posted these photos on social media platforms and adult websites without her consent. He even sent links to the photos to her friends and family via a publicly accessible Dropbox folder.
DL’s former partner was also accused of gaining unauthorized access to her phone, social media accounts, email, and even her mother’s home camera system to spy on her. He reportedly sent her a threatening message claiming she would be haunted by her past online.
The defendant did not appear in court nor have legal representation, leading to the court ordering him to pay $200 million for past and future mental anguish and an additional $1 billion in exemplary damages.
While this settlement ranks among the highest in US revenge porn cases, previous cases have also resulted in significant awards. In 2018, a California woman received $6.8 million after her ex-partner shared explicit photos of her on adult websites.
DL revealed that after receiving minimal help from local law enforcement, she sought assistance from a civil attorney. A 2016 study by the Data & Society Research Institute indicated that around 10 million Americans, mostly women aged 18 to 29, reported being victims of non-consensual or revenge porn. Although all US states, except Massachusetts and South Carolina, have laws against revenge porn, such cases underscore the significance of updating these legal frameworks to ensure adequate protection for victims.
SOURCE: Ref Image from BBC
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