First Virginia Woman Charged Under Revenge Porn Law Warned Victim 'Not To Mess' With Her, Police Say

A Virginia woman has the dubious honor of becoming the first person to be charged under the state’s new “revenge porn” law. Police say Rachel Lynn Craig, 28, in a jealous rage, stole a nude picture of her ex-boyfriend’s current girlfriend and posted it on Facebook, aiming to embarrass the young woman.

Virginia formally outlawed the “dissemination or sale of images of another” with the intent to do harm on July 1. Similar laws have been passed in 12 other states since 2013, with community lawmakers aiming to prohibit this kind of public humiliation without infringing on free speech online.

“That was one thing we really had to establish,” Waynesboro Police Sergeant Brian Edwards told WVIR-TV. “What was the intent of Ms. Craig for posting this? She considered the victim a romantic rival for this one individual’s affections and she said that she did it out of anger.”

Craig took credit for posting the pictures on her Facebook page, where she warned the victim “not to mess with her,” police told news outlets.

Thanks to the notoriety around sites like IsAnyoneUp.com, revenge porn is perhaps more commonly regarded as a crime committed by men against women. But Craig’s arrest is the latest in a series of revenge porn crimes committed by females, with a number of sites sprouting up with the sole stated aim of embarrassing women whom boyfriends have cheated with.

“A spurned spouse, girlfriend or boyfriend may get revenge by uploading photographs to websites, many of which are set up specifically for these kinds of photos or videos,” the National Conference of State Legislatures explained in an overview of the issue. “The victim’s name, address and links to social media profiles are often included with the images, and some websites charge a fee to have the material removed.”

While punishments vary from state to state, Virginia law has Craig facing one year in jail and/or a $2,500 fine if convicted, according to a WVIR report.