[LUM#7] Facing revenge porn

[LUM Magazine] - Published on April 10, 2018 in Doctoral training and hdr, Science-Society

These doctoral students in law have had their award-winning article published in Le Monde. In it, Cécile Lefrançois and Clémence Vialatte explore "pornographic revenge". A devastating phenomenon, still poorly punished.

Some spurned lovers are now using an unprecedented form of revenge: publishing videos or photos of a former partner, taken in the past in private, on the Internet. Born on the other side of the Atlantic, this phenomenon, known as revenge porn , is growing in popularity all over the world... sometimes to the point of driving victims to suicide.

So much so that Cécile Lefrançois and Clémence Vialatte, PhD students at the University of Montpellier, decided to explore the legal vagueness still surrounding these cases. In May 2017, when they decided to compete for the prestigious Guy Carcassonne Prize for an article related to constitutional law, they turned their attention to the subject of revenge porn. " This recent phenomenon raises significant legal issues ," explains Clémence Vialatte.

Better legal framework

In two intensive days, the PhD students wrote the article with four hands... and won the prize with publication in Le Monde, against 155 other articles submitted in France. Laurent Fabius, President of the French Constitutional Council, awarded the prize in the presence of French Minister of Justice Nicole Belloubet. " It was a great source of pride for us, especiallyas we were not in our comfort zone as specialists in criminal law ," says Clémence.

In their article, the prizewinners urge a better legal framework for revenge porn. Admittedly, since October 2016, the law punishes the dissemination of a person's image or voice without their consent " whenever it is of a sexual nature ". The penalty? Two years' imprisonment and a fine of 60,000 euros. This is a clear step forward, since revenge porn has often gone unpunished in the absence of appropriate legislation.

450 friends

But the new law lacks precision. " How do you define 'sexuality'?" asks Clémence. Are artistic nude photos, or shots of young girls dressed but in suggestive poses, sexual in nature? This lack of clarity could enable a litigant to submit a question prioritaire de constitutionnalité... thus calling the law into question. " Legal experts know little about this provision on revenge porn, which is buried in a very broad law ", says Cécile.

Beyond the law, the young women wanted to alert young people to the violence of these acts. " Many young people take it lightly. A photo shared with 450 friends on a social network remains 'confidential' to them . They forget that it's all about love and trust, " explains Cécile. The title chosen by the authors for their article aptly evokes this sense of dread in the face of sordid betrayal: " Que reste-t-il de nos amours?

Key words : Doctoral students, Law, LUM#7, LUM Magazine, Company