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Senator Proposes Revenge Porn Bill

Posted at 4:20 AM, Mar 13, 2019
and last updated 2019-03-13 19:48:33-04

LINCOLN, Neb. (KMTV) — 25 years ago Diane Parris fell in love.

"I trusted him completely. I thought we would be together forever," said Diane.

While together she let that man take a photo of her naked. Diane says she thought that photo was long gone until her husband received an email. The email included her photo and demanded her husband drop out of the race for state senate.

Diane and her husband immediately called the police, but there was nothing they could do. Almost every state in the U.S. has some type of revenge porn law, but Nebraska does not.

Now, Sen. Megan Hunt is trying to change that with LB164. The bill would make revenge porn illegal. If convicted, first-time offenders could face up to one year in prison and up a $1,000 fine. A second offense would carry a fine of up to $10,000 and two years in prison.

"This is a problem that is really a modern problem and we need modern legislation to address it," said Sen. Hunt.

After having no luck with police, Diane and her husband reported it to the FBI. Her ex confessed and now faces a federal charge for extortion.

While Diane's photo was never posted, she says what her ex did hurt a lot of people.

"The fact that I had to share that with my children, it's hard to find words to describe just how horrifying it is," said Diane.

Diane says it's easy to say, "Just don't take a photo."

But in a world where one click from a camera can destroy a life, she says blaming the victim isn't the answer.

"If you trust somebody, it's not your fault. If someone turns around and stabs you in the back, it's not something that you have to blame yourself for. That is on them," said Diane.

Nebraska's Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on LB164 today.