San Diego man guilty in ‘revenge porn’ case
A 28-year-old San Diego man was found guilty Monday of operating a “revenge porn†website that included naked and sexually explicit pictures of women posted by angry ex-boyfriends or ex-husbands.
Kevin Christopher Bollaert posted the pictures and then charged women from $300 to $350 to have the pictures removed, prosecutors said during the trial in San Diego County Superior Court.
An eight-woman, four-man jury found Bollaert guilty of multiple felony counts of identity theft and extortion.
Bollaert faces a possible 20 years in prison when sentenced April 3. “This is an individual who has no moral compass,†said Deputy Atty. Gen. Tawnya Austin.
Women testified that the pictures had created embarrassment and stress that affected their jobs and their families. But Bollaert’s attorney had argued that while the website was “sleazy,†it did not violate the law.
“He didn’t think he did anything wrong,†said defense attorney Emily Rose-Weber.
The state’s revenge porn law, a misdemeanor, became effective Oct. 1, 2013, after the conduct for which Bollaert was charged.
Prosecutors said that Bollaert created a website that allowed the anonymous posting of nude and sexually explicit photos. The website required that a person posting a picture include the subject’s name, location, age and Facebook profile.
Prosecutors said more than 10,000 images from California and other states were posted between Dec. 2, 2012, and Sept. 17, 2013.
Court documents include emails to Bollaert’s website from women demanding that pictures of them be removed. In the emails, the women say that posting of the pictures left them angry, scared and feeling violated.
“This website is an absolute disgrace,†emailed one woman. “It makes me sick you run this as your little family business.â€
Another woman, from Santa Monica, emailed that after the pictures were posted along with her name and other personal information, she received phone calls, lewd photos and numerous emails from people “asking to ‘hook up.’â€
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