Summary — SB 25-288: "Intimate Digital Depictions — Criminal & Civil Actions"
Note: The legislative text for SB 25-288 was not included with your request. The title and legislative metadata (sponsors and actions) are provided below. The summary states the bill’s apparent purpose and the typical, likely provisions and impacts for legislation with this title. Where I infer common provisions from the subject matter, I label them as likely or typical; consult the enrolled bill text on the state legislature’s website for exact language and specifics.
Purpose / Intent
SB 25-288 is intended to address harms caused by the nonconsensual creation, distribution, or public sharing of intimate digital depictions (commonly called “revenge porn” or “nonconsensual pornography”). The bill appears designed to create or clarify both criminal penalties and civil remedies for victims whose intimate images or videos are shared without consent.
Status & Procedural Timeline
- Introduced (Senate): 2025-04-09 (assigned to Judiciary)
- Passed both chambers; House and Senate actions occurred April–May 2025
- Sent to Governor: 2025-05-13
- Governor Signed: 2025-06-02 (enacted)
Sponsors
Primary and cosponsors include Matt Soper, Robert Rodriguez, Brianna Titone (primaries listed) and many cosponsors: C. Kipp, A. Boesenecker, S. Bird, D. Michaelson Jenet, T. Exum, D. Roberts, N. Hinrichsen, I. Jodeh, L. Cutter, M. Snyder, N. Ricks, K. McCormick, C. Espenoza, E. Hamrick, J. Bridges, M. Duran, W. Lindstedt, J. Coleman, K. Mullica, K. Wallace.
Key provisions (likely / typical for this subject)
Because the bill text is not provided here, the following are commonly included elements in statutes titled like SB 25-288 and likely reflect the bill’s scope:
- Definitions: precise definitions for terms such as “intimate visual depiction,” “digital image,” “consent,” and “distribution.”
- Criminal offenses: creates or updates criminal penalties for knowingly creating, sharing, or threatening to share intimate images without consent; gradations may vary by intent, extent of distribution, and resulting harm. May include misdemeanor-to-felony escalations.
- Civil cause of action: permits victims to sue the person who created/distributed the image for damages and equitable relief.
- Remedies and damages: may permit actual damages, emotional distress damages, punitive damages, statutory damages, injunctive relief, and recovery of attorneys’ fees and costs.
- Takedown / removal orders: authority for courts to order removal of images from websites/platforms and cooperation requirements for service providers.
- Expungement / sealing: provisions for sealing convictions or restricting public disclosure of victim identity or images.
- Exceptions / defenses: likely carve-outs for images taken or shared with consent, law enforcement activity, disclosures in official proceedings, and bona fide news reporting or public interest exceptions.
- Protections for minors: possible enhanced provisions where depictions involve minors (often handled under child pornography or separate statutes).
- Victim protections: privacy safeguards in proceedings (e.g., in camera review, limited public filings, pseudonym use).
Who is affected
- Victims: individuals whose intimate images or videos are shared without consent will gain criminal and civil pathways for relief and potentially expedited takedowns.
- Perpetrators: persons who create, post, or share such material may face criminal prosecution and civil liability.
- Online platforms and service providers: may face court orders to remove content and possibly limited obligations to preserve evidence or cooperate.
- Law enforcement and courts: will have new or clarified statutory bases for investigation, prosecution, and civil adjudication.
Potential impacts
- Increased legal remedies and deterrence for nonconsensual intimate-image sharing.
- Greater use of civil litigation and takedown procedures to remove harmful content.
- Administrative burden on platforms to respond to removal/takedown orders.
- Possible debates over free-speech and press exceptions depending on wording of defenses.
Next steps / Where to read the full text
For the precise operative language, penalties, damage amounts (if any), exceptions, timelines, and implementation details, consult the enacted bill text and enrolled act on the state legislature’s website or the governor’s office bill signing materials. If you provide the bill text, I can produce a clause-by-clause or provision-level summary.
