When a Wampum man allegedly tried to use naked photographs of a woman to get her to go on a date with him, the county's district attorney charged him with selling obscene/sexual materials, even though the man wasn't actually selling anything.

“The charges we have are close to putting a square peg in a round hole,” District Attorney Richard Goldinger said. “It's very frustrating. It's an example of the law not keeping up with the times and technology.”

But a proposed bill by state Rep. Tedd Nesbit, R-8th, who serves part of Butler County, would create a new charge known as sexual extortion that would range from a misdemeanor to a felony, depending on the victim and offender's ages.

It will be voted on next week in the judiciary committee, and Nesbit hopes it will pass the committee and move on to a general vote.

Nesbit said the bill has bipartisan support and noted that state Rep. Joanna McClinton, D-191st, a Democrat, co-sponsored the bill. “The current extortion statute only relates to money,” Nesbit said. “But we want to catch the law up to technology and stop this crime. A lot of times, you can't get them for that particular crime.”

Stephen Allen Dayton, 32, was sentenced to 1 to 2 years in jail and four years of probation after pleading guilty Nov. 11 to selling obscene/sexual materials. But under Nesbit's bill, somebody like Dayton would face a specific charge of sexual extortion.

“There were no specific offenses that covered it. We worked with what we had, but this will cover it for sure,” Goldinger said. “I think it's absolutely necessary.”

Requests for comments from the public defender's office on the bill went unanswered.