CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The House of Delegates passed another bill Tuesday connected to the crime of sextortion.
The bill, HB 4842, says a person taking part in the unauthorized disclosure of intimate images can be sued.
The official name of the bill is “Relating to civil remedies for the unauthorized disclosure of intimate images.”
Bryce Tate, 15, a sophomore at Nitro High School, was found Nov. 6 with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
According to the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office, an investigation into his cellphone revealed he had been the victim of sextortion, a form of online exploitation in which offenders coerce or manipulate victims into sending sensitive or intimate images, often threatening to share them.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman J.B. Akers, R-Kanawha, said his committee has been working closely with Bryce’s father, Adam Tate.
Akers said was pleased to learn lawmakers passed a bill last year, before his son’s death, that enhances the penalties for sextortion. Earlier this session, the House passed amendments to existing code to add sexual extortion to the state’s sexual offender registry and its sexual abuse registry.
Akers said the civil lawsuit bill, passed Tuesday, fills what appears to be a missing gap.
“It adds the crime of sexual extortion to those who may be liable for the threatened to potential disclosure of these intimate images,” Akers said.
The bill passed on a unanimous vote and was sent to the state Senate for consideration.