SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A bill is headed to the governor’s desk that would create a path for suing people who send unsolicited sexual pictures, but the legislation stops short of making “cyberflashing” a crime in California.
If signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, SB 53 by Sen. Connie Leyva, D-Chino, will allow Californians to take someone to civil court over unwanted lewd photos sent to them electronically; plaintiffs who win a suit could get up to $30,000 in damages.
The legislation, approved Monday on the Senate floor in a 37-0 vote, comes after reports of men using the AirDrop iPhone feature to send lewd pictures to nearby strangers or on online dating apps without consent from the recipients.