A man in Yellowknife has received a 12-month jail term for sharing explicit videos of his ex-partner on social media without her consent. The 36-year-old was found guilty after a trial for sharing intimate images without permission. To protect the victim’s identity, the offender’s name is not disclosed by CBC.
In a written ruling issued on July 29, N.W.T. Territorial Court judge Stephanie Whitecloud-Brass decided against a community-based sentence due to the significant breach of trust, high moral responsibility, and retaliatory nature of the offense. In addition to the jail time, the man will undergo 18 months of probation, 60 hours of community service, provide a DNA sample, and attend mandatory counseling.
The sentencing decision outlined that the man and the victim initially met on a dating app in May 2023, leading to a professional and romantic relationship. Although the victim had agreed to video their intimate moments, she had explicitly stated that any content revealing her face or distinctive tattoos should never be shared. Despite this, the man posted two explicit videos on the X platform in July 2024, just after the breakup, with the intent to hurt and embarrass his former partner.
The videos remained online for 46 days before the victim discovered them, one showing her face and the other revealing a recognizable tattoo on her body. The man initially removed one video upon confrontation but only deleted the second after direct contact from the victim.
The court classified the act, commonly known as “revenge porn,” as a form of intimate partner violence, privacy violation, and sexual offense. Judge Whitecloud-Brass emphasized the severity of the distribution scope due to the videos being shared on a public account with 285 followers, potentially reaching an unlimited audience.
Despite this being a first offense, the defense requested a non-custodial sentence with probation, which the judge deemed insufficient. The victim’s impact statement detailed the emotional distress caused by the incident, including feelings of vulnerability, anxiety, and sleep disturbances.
As part of his probation terms, the convicted man is restricted from using social media accounts and is prohibited from contacting or approaching the victim.