Maryland Legislature Seeks to Make 'Revenge Porn' a Felony

BALTIMORE — State Delegate Jon Cardin is proposing a bill tomorrow that would make posting “revenge porn” a felony in Maryland.

Cardin, a Democrat who is running for attorney general, has authored a bill that makes it illegal to “intentionally disclose in a public way, using the Internet or otherwise, a sexually explicit image of another person without their consent to release that image.” And as a deterrent: offenders would face up to five years in prison and a $25,000 fine.

According to a news release, Cardin, Danielle Keats Citron, a University of Maryland Carey law professor, and victim advocate Annmarie Chirarini will speak about the bill during a press conference tomorrow morning at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law in Baltimore.

If the bill is approved, Maryland would join a handful of states that have criminalized the new form of Internet harassment, which has grown in popularity over the years. Often times, perpetrators are spurned lovers who post compromising photos of their exes as a means of revenge.

New Jersey acted as trailblazer for the campaign against revenge porn, making it a felony in 2004. Califiornia followed suit earlier this month when Gov. Jerry Brown approved a bill that designated it as misdemeanor offense. New York and Pennsylvania law makers have announced that they are drafting similar legislation for their respective states.     

Related:  

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Cubbi Thompson Fronts Latest From Reality Kings

Cubbi Thompson stars with Mike Ox in the latest release from Reality Kings, titled “Making Him Sweat!”

AEBN Announces Peter Green as Top Male Boy/Girl Performer for Summer 2025

AEBN has revealed its top 10 male Boy/Girl performers for summer 2025, with Peter Green landing atop the leaderboard.

Lily Starfire on Power, Pleasure, and Listening to Her Body

On any given day, you might easily pass Lily Starfire in a park or notice her picking out vegetables at the market, and never guess that she’s one of the adult industry’s rising stars. Not because she doesn’t look the part — she’s radiant — but because there’s zero diva energy here, just a young woman with an easygoing smile, a contagious laugh and a friendly aura that whispers “Georgia roots.”

Destiny James, Breezy Bri Headline 'Lesbian Step-Daughters 8'

Destiny James and Breezy Bri topline “Lesbian Step-Daughters 8” from Girlfriends Films.

Spicey AI Relaunches Site, Debuts $Spicey Tokens

Interactive voice chat platform Spicey AI has relaunched its website and introduced $Spicey tokens.

Liz Jordan, Sarah Illustrates Star in 3rd Installment of Blacked Feature 'The Blueprint'

Liz Jordan stars with Vixen Media Group exclusives Sarah Illustrates and Jason Luv in the third installment of studio imprint Blacked's new feature, "The Blueprint."

FSC: Missouri Age Verification Rule Will Not Take Effect August 30

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) announced that Missouri's proposed age verification legislation will not take effect on August 30, as it had originally estimated.

Little Caprice, Marcello Bravo to Co-Host 2025 XMA Europa Awards

XBIZ is pleased to announce that husband-and-wife duo Little Caprice and Marcello Bravo will co-host adult’s biggest night in Europe: the 2025 XMA Europa Awards on Sept. 4, in the epic climax to XBIZ’s fall events series.

TEAs Reveal 2026 Event Dates

The 2026 Trans Erotica Awards (TEAs) and related festivities will take place March 6-8 at Avalon in Hollywood, organizers have announced.

Germany Will Block Payments to AV-Noncompliant Adult Sites as of Dec. 1

Starting Dec. 1, Germany will implement new rules prohibiting financial institutions from providing payment services to adult sites deemed to have inadequate age verification systems and making it easier for the government to target websites mirroring the content of such sites.

Show More