If you have an online dating or social media account, it is very likely you have experienced cyberflashing or what is more commonly referred to on the internet as dick pics.
Effective September 1, 2019, it is a Class C misdemeanor offense to send unsolicited pictures of your sexual organ via electronic messaging. If found guilty, the penalty carries up to a $500 fine.
The law, known as UNLAWFUL ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION OF SEXUALLY EXPLICIT VISUAL MATERIAL, found in section 21.19 of the Texas Penal Code, states that a person commits an offense if :
· the person, without the consent or request of the receiver,
· “knowingly transmits by electronic means visual material that depicts any person engaging in sexual conduct or
· with the person’s intimate parts exposed or covered genitals of a male person that are in a discernibly turgid state.”
5 TAKAWAYS:
1) If a person sends a picture of exposed private parts electronically without the consent of the receiver it is illegal.
2) If a person sends picture of an erect penis electronically, even if it is clothed, without the consent of the receiver, it is illegal.
3) The intent of this law is to discourage online harassment.
4) Consensual sexting is legal!
5) This new law may be infringing on other constitutional rights such as free speech, or may be too broad to enforce, however, those arguments have yet to be challenged legally.
If you have been arrested or know someone who has been arrested contact the Sosa Law Office at 956–621–1277 or email us at info@jasosalaw.com for inquiries.
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