INDIANAPOLIS — What happened to Jennifer Schultz wasn’t illegal, but it soon could be.
When Schultz left her ex-husband, he retaliated by posting inappropriate photos on her Facebook page and sending the photos to male employees at her school, she said Tuesday.
Schultz, a mother of three and music teacher, spoke in support of Senate Bill 243 Tuesday. The bill would criminalize “revenge porn” scenarios like what happened to her.
She went to the City of Fishers to see if there was anything she could do. There wasn’t, so she reached out to lawmakers to see about getting the law changed. Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness attended Tuesday’s hearing to support Schultz.
“When someone tries to dismantle you as a human being, it is a slow and painful process,” Schultz said. “I thought my entire world was crumbling before me.”
If Senate Bill 243 becomes law, it would make posting nude or sexual photos or videos of somebody online without their permission a crime, if they were initially taken with the permission of the subject.
SB 243 was authored by Sen. Aaron Freeman, R-Indianapolis, and Sen. Mike Bohacek, R-Michiana Shores.
Posting the material would be a Class A Misdemeanor. A second offense would be a Level 6 Felony. The second offense would have to be a separate, unrelated conviction.
Another senator asked if the situation had two photos – would that count as two offenses? The answer, Freeman said, is no.
“If you’re asking Aaron Freeman, saying the world is ‘This,’” he said. “I’d say every image you post is a felony. Absolutely. But that’s not what this bill does.”
SB 243 passed the Senate Corrections and Criminal Law Committee, 7-0.
“If I do not speak up, maybe nobody will and nothing will change,” Schultz said. “This won’t change my situation, but it will help others. When we know better, we should do better. I know better, and today, I’m trying to do better right now.”
