DeSantis signs law increasing severity for digital voyeurism crimes
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation on Friday increasing the offense severity of digital voyeurism in Florida.
Video or digital voyeurism occurs when an individual is unknowingly recorded while they are undressing or exposing themselves in an environment that would otherwise be considered private.
The bill, HB 1389, established rankings for various forms of the crime on the state’s Offense Severity Ranking Chart. The chart measures the severity of offenses from least to most severe on a scale from 1 to 10. Digital voyeurism charges originally did not have a ranking.
The new legislation states that anyone under 19 years of age who participates in digital voyeurism for the first time is charged with a first degree misdemeanor, while anyone 19 or older receives a third degree felony. Both charges are marked as a number three on the offense chart.
Regardless of age, anyone who commits digital voyeurism dissemination receives a third degree felony. The offense is ranked as a level four on the severity chart. An individual receives the same charge, ranked as level five, if they commit commercial digital voyeurism dissemination.
A person of any age who commits the same digital voyeurism crime a second or subsequent time will receive a second degree felony charge, ranked as a level five on the offense severity chart.
The legislation also addresses charges for the individual if the victim was a minor, a family member of the offender or was living in the same house as the offender.
The bill was sponsored by Reps. Hillary Cassel, D-Dania Beach, and Lindsay Cross, D-St. Petersburg. Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book, D-Davie, filed the Senate version.
Conversations about video voyeurism sparked attention when former Republican Party of Florida Chairman Christian Ziegler was accused of video voyeurism in November 2023. The potential charges have since been dropped by authorities.
Florida’s new digital voyeurism law will go into effect on Oct. 1.
