Legal Question in Technology Law in Nevada
Nude Photos of Husband's Other Woman
My husband was having an online affair with a woman. She foolishly e-mailed him nude pictures and video of herself. After initial trust issues, my husband willingly gave me passwords to his e-mail account, telling me I can check up on him wheneer I liked. Apparently, he forgot those pictures were still in that e-mail account.
Are there any legal repurcussions if I were to post the nude pictures of the other woman to the web? If so, what are they and how likely are they to ''stick''?
4 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Nude Photos of Husband's Other Woman
If these photos are in a private e-mail to your husband and you post them on a public forum like craigslist.com, this is probably invasion of privacy and the other woman could sue you.
Re: Nude Photos of Husband's Other Woman
Of course there would be repercussions. Finding a digital photo on your computer is essentially no different from finding a physical photo in your house. You do not gain the right to do as you please just because you happen upon the image.
Publishing a nude photo of someone without permission would be an enormous invasion of privacy and would probably cause her tremendous anguish. Even your husband has no right to publish the photo -- the other woman presumably gave it to him only so he could see it, not so he could publish it, and you have no greater rights in the photo than he does.
If you do this and the other woman can prove you did, she will have a very strong civil claim against you for invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress. It's hard to imagine how she could lose such a case, and the damages you might have to pay could be very substantial indeed.
Re: Nude Photos of Husband's Other Woman
Nevada Supreme Court legal precedent counsels against publication of these images:
In State v. Eighth Judicial District Court ex rel. County of Clark, 42 P.3d 233, 240 (Nev. 2002), the Nevada Supreme Court stated:
"To maintain a cause of action for public disclosure of private facts one must prove that a public disclosure of private facts has occurred which would be offensive and objectionable to a reasonable person of ordinary sensibilities." The Restatement (Second) of Torts provides that rules of conditional privilege that apply to a defamation claim are applicable in an invasion of privacy claim.
Re: Nude Photos of Husband's Other Woman
I'm helping several women sue for damages after someone has posted their pictures online. You don't even know that this woman knows you exist. Your husband is the person you should hold accountable, but you know that already.