Ohio has taken a significant step toward combating sextortion with the signing of House Bill 531, named after Braden Markus, a high school football player from Olentangy High School who tragically took his life after falling victim to such a scheme.
The legislation, signed by Governor Mike DeWine, criminalizes sexual extortion, which involves blackmailing someone over the release of private images.
This law, a third-degree felony, includes harsher penalties for perpetrators targeting minors, seniors, or people with disabilities, and mandates courts to consider the severity of the victim’s harm, including suicide.
The bill also offers a path for parents to access their child’s digital assets after their death, addressing the difficulties Braden’s family faced when they couldn’t access his phone for answers. Sextortion has become a serious issue, particularly affecting young people, with over 13,000 reported incidents involving minors between 2021 and 2023, according to the FBI.
Braden’s family and lawmakers hope the new law will serve as a deterrent and protect other children from falling prey to similar predatory schemes. Although an earlier version of the bill included compensation for victims’ families, that provision was removed before the bill’s passage.
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