Bill would add charge of sexual extortion
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.
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