Massachusetts
Massachusetts on verge of becoming second-to-last state to outlaw 'revenge porn'
BOSTON — A bill aimed at outlawing “revenge porn” has been approved by lawmakers in the Massachusetts House and Senate and shipped to Democratic Gov. Maura Healey, a move advocates say was long overdue.
If signed by Healey, the bill — which bars the sharing of explicit images or videos without the consent of those depicted in the videos — would leave South Carolina as the only state not to have a law specifically banning revenge porn.
Supports say the bill, which landed on Healey’s desk Thursday, would align Massachusetts with the other 48 states that have clear prohibitions on disseminating sexually explicit images and videos without the subject’s consent. It is a form of abuse that advocates say has grown increasingly common in the digital age, subjecting people to social and emotional harm often inflicted by former romantic partners.
The bill would make disseminating nude or partially nude photos of another person without their permission criminal harassment. Offenders would face up to two and a half years in prison and a fine of $10,000. On subsequent offenses, the punishment would increase to up to 10 years in prison and a fine of $15,000.
“No person’s life should devolve into chaos because a private photo was shared without their permission, and no person should fear coercion or be threatened with the sharing of such a photo,” Senate President Karen Spilka said.
The bill explicitly states that even though a person might consent to the initial creation of an explicit image or video that doesn’t mean they are also agreeing that it can be distributed without their additional consent in the future.
The advent of artificial intelligence and deepfake technology in the creation of revenge porn has added to the concerns of lawmakers. Supporters said the bill opens the door to legislation further addressing the implications of the emerging technology.
Karissa Hand, an aide to Healey, said the governor, who was previously the state’s attorney general, “has long supported legislation to ban revenge porn and hold accountable those who would engage in abusive, coercive and deeply harmful behavior” and looks forward to reviewing any legislation that reaches her desk.
The legislation establishes a definition for coercive control to account for non-physical forms of abuse such as isolation, threatening harm toward a family member or pet, controlling or monitoring activities, damaging property, publishing sensitive information, and repeated legal action.
Advocates describe coercive control as a pattern of deliberate behavior by an abuser that substantially restricts another person’s safety and autonomy.
By expanding the statute of limitation for domestic violence charges to 15 years, the bill would also give survivors a longer time to seek justice.
Under current law, minors who possess, purchase or share explicit photos of themselves or other minors are charged with violating child sexual abuse image laws and are required to register as sex offenders.
The bill would instead require the state attorney general to develop an educational diversion program to provide adolescents who engage in revenge porn with information about the consequences and life-altering effects caused by engaging in the behavior.
District attorneys would still have the authority to petition the court to bring criminal charges in extreme cases.
Jane Doe Inc., the Massachusetts Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence, called passage of the bill in the Legislature “a milestone for survivors in Massachusetts.”
“Non-consensual sharing of intimate images impacts thousands of people in Massachusetts every year, and increases an individual’s likelihood of further sexual harm,” the group said in a written statement.
“This bill takes a thoughtful approach to addressing the problem – one that balances strong protections for survivors with a recognition that younger people who cause this harm often can and should benefit from educational diversion over prosecution,” the group added.
Massachusetts
Woman dead after van hits 2 people in Brockton, Massachusetts
Two people were hit by a van in Brockton, Massachusetts Thursday morning and one of them died.
It happened just after 6:40 a.m. near the intersection of North Main Street and Livingston Road. The van stopped after the crash.
When police arrived, they found two people in the road, a man and a woman, both in their 40’s. The woman died at the scene. The man was rushed to a nearby hospital.
Their names have not been made public.
There was debris scattered across the pavement and there was a large dent on the van’s hood.
It’s not clear yet what caused the crash or if the driver will be charged. State and local police shut down the intersection for their investigation.
Brockton, Massachusetts is 24 miles south of Boston.
Massachusetts
Massachusetts arrested over sword-wielding, threats to Donald Trump | The Jerusalem Post
A Massachusetts man accused of making threats on Facebook to kill United States President Donald Trump was arrested on Wednesday after a stand-off with law enforcement in which the man began brandishing a sword.
Andrew Emerald, 45, was charged in an eight-count indictment filed in federal court in Springfield, Massachusetts, over a string of threatening posts he allegedly made last year, including one in which he vowed to travel to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida if the president was not dead by 2026.
“Either Trump is dead and in the ground by 2026, or I am hunting him down and putting him there,” Emerald wrote in another social media post in May 2025, according to the indictment.
A lawyer for Emerald did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
His Facebook posts came to the FBI’s attention as a result of a tip from a citizen who had warned Emerald that it was a crime to threaten the life of the president, according to documents prosecutors filed seeking to have him detained.
Emerald replied that he had been threatening Trump online for a decade and that, if law enforcement came after him, “I’ll kill them until they kill me,” according to an affidavit from an FBI agent.
When the FBI on Wednesday went to his residence in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, to execute an arrest warrant, Emerald refused to come out before eventually stepping into view brandishing a long, metallic sword, the affidavit said.
The FBI agent said Emerald had previously referenced his sword in Facebook posts threatening Trump, including in July 2025, when he said he would stick it through the president’s throat.
Emerald told agents they would need to shoot him before locking his door, the FBI agent recounted.
Local police and an FBI crisis negotiation team were called in. He finally agreed to be arrested after a police officer reached him on his phone, the FBI agent’s affidavit said.
Massachusetts
Jewish families in western Massachusetts get ready for Passover
CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP) – Jewish families in western Massachusetts and across the world are preparing to observe the eight-day festival of Passover starting at sundown Wednesday. The holiday commemorates the biblical story of Exodus and the Israelites’ liberation from slavery in Egypt.
The festival is also known as Pesach and the Festival of Unleavened Bread, according to the National Day Calendar. Its date changes annually because it is set according to the first full moon in the Hebrew calendar month of Nissan.
The roots of the holiday are found in the Old Testament. While traditionally a Jewish observance, many Christians have also begun participating in Passover celebrations.
The holiday starts with the Passover Seder, which is a ritual feast. The event includes reading, singing, washing hands, drinking wine, and eating specific foods.
A traditional Seder meal includes roasted lamb, flatbread called matzah, bitter herbs like horseradish, and vegetables dipped in saltwater. These items are arranged on a Seder plate.
The food and wine are ingested in a specific order during the meal. The procedure is written in a book called the Haggadah, which also includes the consumption of four cups of wine.
All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by WWLP. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat information into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by WWLP staff before being published.
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