Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
CHESTERFIELD, Va. (AP) — A former candidate for a seat in Virginia's House of Delegates has been charged with crimes commonly characterized as “revenge porn.”
Sheila Bynum-Coleman was indicted Monday in Henrico County on two misdemeanor counts alleging that she disseminated nude photos of a woman at her workplace, news outlets reported.
Bynum-Coleman took issue with that characterization of the case in a phone call with the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and then said she did not want to comment.
Last year, she tried but failed to unseat Republican Kirk Cox, who was a House Speaker at the time.
Virginia laws says it's illegal to disseminate photos or video of another person in a state of undress with the intent to coerce or intimidate.
Authorities said that Bynum-Coleman obtained nude photos of the victim and showed them to the woman's supervisor at her workplace.
Special prosecutor Robert Cerullo, who was appointed to handle the case, said Bynum-Coleman told the victim's boss that the nude photos were taken at work and on company time. He said it's unclear what Bynum-Coleman's motive was.
Cerullo also said that Bynum-Coleman posted copies of the nude photos to a stop sign near the woman's job.
Bynum-Coleman, 47, is a Democrat who lives in Chesterfield and works as a real estate agent.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
