Massachusetts Governor Healey signs bill banning revenge porn, expanding protections against abuse, exploitation; here are the details

BOSTON – Governor Maura T. Healey today signed into law An Act to prevent abuse and exploitation, which seeks to prevent abuse and exploitation, strengthen protections for survivors, and enhance education for young people about the dangers of sexting and deepfakes. 

The law adds Massachusetts to the states that have acted to prohibit image-based sexual assault – sometimes referred to as “revenge porn,” which is the non-consensual sharing of explicit images. The law extends to “computer-generated images,” such as “deepfakes,” which have recently caused alarm. It will also expand the criminal harassment statute to prohibit the distribution of sexual images without consent and increase the maximum fines for criminal harassment convictions. 

“This law will save lives and strengthens our efforts to hold accountable those who would engage in abusive, coercive and deeply harmful behavior. This is about stopping violence, because nobody deserves to be subjected to threats, abuse or control,” said Governor Maura Healey. “We’re grateful to the Legislature for their hard work on this legislation, as well as to all of the survivors who bravely came forward to share their powerful stories of pain, fear and trauma to make a difference for generations to come.”  

“The diversion and education components of this bill are so important to make sure young people understand the dangers of sexting and deepfakes, especially as the technology available to them is rapidly changing,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “It also takes the critical step of expanding the definition of abuse to include coercive control, which will further support survivors of domestic violence that might not be physical, but still causes lasting harm and trauma.” 

The law creates a diversion program for minors who share explicit images to teach them about the dangers of sexting. It allows minors charged with possessing or distributing nude images of other minors to be tried as juveniles in Juvenile Court, and it requires DESE to encourage school districts to implement age-appropriate instruction on media literacy skills for all grade levels. 

The law also seeks to further protect survivors by expanding the definition of “abuse” under Chapter 209A to include “coercive control.” Coercive control is a pattern of behavior intended to threaten, intimidate, harass, isolate, control, coerce or compel compliance of a family or household member that causes fear or a reduce sense of physical safety or autonomy. Examples of coercive control are publishing sexually explicit images without consent or harming or threatening to harm a child or pet. 

“The inclusion of coercive control in this bill is a vital advancement in safeguarding individuals from abuse. It acknowledges the severe impact of manipulative behaviors and provides crucial protections for victims-survivors,” said Vilma Uribe, Executive Director of the Governor’s Council to Address Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, and Human Trafficking. “Equally important is the inclusion of media literacy for our youth, empowering them to navigate the digital world responsibly.” 

The law also makes the statute of limitations for certain domestic violence offenses equal to the statute of limitations for rape, assault with intent to commit rape and sex trafficking. It extends the statute of limitations for assault and battery on a family or household member or against someone with an active protective order from six years to 15 years.