Harris County Civil Courthouse in Houston, Texas.Photo:JHVEPhoto/Getty
JHVEPhoto/Getty
The Harris County District Court agreed that Marques Jamal Jackson committed image-based sexual abuse, also known as “revenge porn,” to inflict a combination of psychological abuse, domestic violence and sexual abuse, according to an Aug. 11statement from the Gilde Law Firm,one of two Houston-area firms that represented the victim.
During their relationship, Jackson had access to the victim’s mother’s security cameras as well as the victim’s cell phone, email, and social media login information, according to the suit. After the pair broke up, the woman said she told Jackson she did not consent to him sharing any intimate photos he had of her while they were together.
However, the victim claimed Jackson went against her wishes. According to the suit, Jackson spied on the woman through her mother’s security cameras and uploaded intimate photos and videos of her on a public “Dropbox” folder, which he shared on social media and with her family, friends, and co-workers.
Jackson also accessed the woman’s personal bank account and used her money to pay for his rent and other services without her knowledge, the suit says.
Additionally, Jackson sent the woman harassing calls and text messages from fake phone numbers. In March 2022, he sent the woman a message that read: “You will spend the rest of your life trying and failing to wipe yourself off the internet. Everyone you ever meet will hear the story and go looking… Happy Hunting,” according to the suit.
Eventually, a jury saw evidence that Jackson reacted to the couple’s breakup “with the intent to embarrass, harass, torment, humiliate, and publicly shame” D.L., the law firm statement reads.
Jackson was ordered to pay the victim $200 million for past and future mental anguish (compensatory damages) and $1 billion in exemplary damages, per the statement.
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“We are grateful the jury took a strong stand against the defendant’s abhorrent behavior and against image-based sexual abuse,” Lead trial lawyer Bradford J. Gilde, of Gilde Law Firm said.
“While a judgment in this case is unlikely to be recovered, the compensatory verdict gives D.L. back her good name,” he added. “The punitive verdict also is the jury’s plea to raise awareness of this tech-fueled national epidemic. We will forever admire D.L.’s courage in fighting back. We hope the staggering amount of this verdict sends a message of deterrence and prevents others from engaging in this despicable activity.”
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go tothehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
source: people.com
