Criminal Charges for Networking Nudity

As reported in the Dominion Post, after a heated break-up a man posted a nude photograph of his ex-lover on the social networking site, Facebook, which was available to 500 million active account holders to view.

The crime has made legal history, and the perpetrator, Joshua Simon Ashby, 20, has been jailed.

It took 12 hours for police authorities, and Facebook, to close the woman's account.

Wellington District Court's Judge Andrew Becroft wouldn't allow Ashby to hide his face from Dominion Post photographers and said, "There was a certain symmetry to it."

Judge Becroft said that Ashby had posted the photograph as a result from his "irresponsible drunken jealous rage" following the couple's end to a five-month long relationship.

The rarely used morality and decency section of the Crimes Act allowed, possibly for the first time, a sentencing for committing a crime via social media.

After pleading guilty, Ashby has been sentenced to four months in jail for one count of distributing indecent matter and for six other counts that included threatening to kill, willful damage, theft of his ex's clothes and assault.

After texting her threats on July 23, Ashby put her naked photo on Facebook.  Still unsatisfied with only 218 of her friends able to access it, he changed her password so that the photo would be made public to anyone with a Facebook account.

Her friends alerted her via text.

Judge Becroft, in adapting a print law for Internet abuse said, "Technology can't be used in this way.  You would do incalculable damage to someone's reputation."

Ashby's parents, while supporting their son, said that the judge had done "excellent" work.  Mr. Ashby said, "He's not a mean or nasty person.  Because he's intense and puts everything into things, he probably reacts in an intense way when it doesn't go well for him."

Mrs. Ashby added, "And maybe when someone thinks about doing it they'll remember someone got sent to prison for that and they'll say: `Oh my God, I'm not going to do that.'  He does feel for his ex-girlfriend and what he's put her through and he just wants to put it behind him."

At the time he posted the photo, Ashby also stole his ex's dresses, soaked them in water and cut them up. She forgave him and they got back together. Then, during an alcohol-fueled argument in October, Ashby pushed her to the ground and broke her cell phone in two.

The victim, per Judge Becroft, was "embarrassed, felt exposed and ridiculed and couldn't sleep after."

Leah Davison, Ashby's defense attorney, said that her client knew "full well" that he had a substance abuse problem and that he behaved in a "very immature manner". 

Sean Lyons, a Netsafe spokesman, said that the cyber watchdog group usually gets calls from adults after breakups, as that's when they discover that their personal photographs have been used in e-mails, and sometimes, Facebook.

If you are facing criminal charges that stem from items you've posted on the Internet, click here to contact a criminal defense attorney in our directory.