A mayor in Maryland has been charged with spreading “revenge porn” online.
State prosecutors charged Cambridge Mayor Andrew Bradshaw with 50 counts of distributing revenge porn on Reddit. The former mayor is alleged to have posted explicit photos of a former romantic partner with sexually degrading captions attached, often including racial slurs.
“Using someone’s private images without their consent is a serious breach of trust and invasion of privacy, and the power and breadth of the internet makes such a violation even more egregious,” said State Prosecutor Charlton T. Howard III in a press release. “Our office is committed to protecting victims from those who abuse their positions of power and trust.”
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According to the charging document, Bradshaw, 32, created several accounts on Reddit and posted nude photos of an unnamed individual, 26, who had been in a past romantic relationship with Bradshaw. The photos were captioned with racial slurs and sexually explicit language and posted in subreddits such as “DegradeThisPig” and “Slut.”
The images were reported by the victim to law enforcement in May, according to court documents. The victim told police that she did not consent to Bradshaw publishing the explicit photos and that she had sent them while the pair were in a relationship. Police then tracked the photos to Bradshaw’s IP address.
Bradshaw made his first appearance in court Monday and was released of his own cognizance, reports CBS Baltimore.
If convicted, Bradshaw could face a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a $5,000 fee for each charge.
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The city of Cambridge said in a statement on its website that it is “currently gathering information” on Bradshaw’s conduct.
The city government has said it will cooperate with state police and the state prosecutor but had no further comment on the proceedings.
Bradshaw was elected mayor in January 2021 and is the youngest mayor in Cambridge’s history.
