Warlord chef, co-owner Trevor Fleming charged with sharing sexually explicit images of woman without consent
The co-owner and chef of acclaimed Chicago restaurant Warlord is charged with sharing sexually explicit images of a woman without her consent.
Trevor Fleming, 41, appeared in court Monday to face charges of non-consensual dissemination of a sexual image. The allegations were brought by a woman who had a romantic relationship with him in the past, according to court records.
On Monday, the courts issued an order of protection against Fleming. In it, he is accused of distributing private photos in 2023 without the woman's consent, which depict the two engaged in a sexual act.
The woman said she petitioned for the order of protection because she is fearful of Fleming, possible future abuse and a past history of verbal and emotional abuse.
CBS News Chicago legal analyst Irv Miller said such cases of what is colloquially referred to as "revenge porn" have a relatively low hurdle for prosecutors.
"It's a very broad statute and it covers a lot of territory," Miller said. "And the image speaks for itself. And if it's transmitted and the image is there, it makes it pretty easy for a judge or jury to say 'hey, listen, you violated the law.'"
Court records show Fleming has another order of protection against him from a separate former romantic partner, effective until March 2027.
CBS News Chicago reached out to Fleming for comment. He responded, saying, "Spurned ex-girlfriends from years ago teaming up to tear me down. Saddest part of all is all the people who will be affected."
Warlord opened in Chicago's Avondale neighborhood in 2023. It has received critical acclaim and is featured in the Michelin Guide. But Fleming and the restaurant have also been under scrutiny in the past by the CHAAD Project, an organization that aims to end labor abuses in the industry.
"We started hearing reports from workers back in 2024 about abuses within Warlord specifically," said Raeghn Draper, executive director and co-founder of the CHAAD Project.
The group received several reports from workers who alleged abuse by Fleming.
"We thought it was someone who not only had caused harm in the past, but was likely to continue causing harm, so that pattern is still being continued," Draper said.
The CHAAD Project said it's not surprised to hear of the charge against Fleming, and added it aims to help industry workers to bring to light concerns before the negative behavior escalates.
"I hope the industry will continue to push for accountability, not just from Warlord, but from other restaurants who have similar stories inside of them," Draper said.
Fleming was released Monday on electronic monitoring. He is due back in court on Wednesday.