"Revenge porn" now a crime in Colorado

DENVER - It's now a crime in Colorado to post intimate pictures of someone online for the purpose of humiliating them.

Gov. John Hickenlooper signed the bill into law Thursday at the state Capitol, banning so-called "revenge porn," CBS Denver reported.

According to the station, the push for the law came after one of its reporters confronted the operator of a revenge porn website, Craig Brittain.

Brittain was sharing some people's most intimate pictures and extorting them, asking the women to pay to have those pictures removed from the site.

After those stories were broadcast on CBS Denver,the station says Brittain took down his website.

Law enforcement said there was no legal grounds to stop Brittain from posting the pictures.

State Representative Amy Stephens sponsored the bill. She said ruining someone's life through revenge porn will not be tolerated in Colorado.

"We had some women victims who wrote letters for the committee to read and I really applaud their courage. That's not easy," said Stephens, a Republican representing El Paso County. "They got a huge result today. This is a big "W" for them."

Attorney Andrew Contiguglia was also at the bill signing, having represented several women profiled in the CBS Denver investigation. He was able to get their pictures off the internet.

Contiguglia said the measure barring revenge porn is a good start but the law needs to stay nimble and be able to respond to predatory threats as technology changes.