Last year, Georgia lawmakers changed the sentences for consensual oral sex between teens. It was a felony, now it is a misdemeanor with sentences of up to one year. This change has sparked a legal battle in the state Supreme Court over whether to release Genarlow Wilson under the new laws. Wilson was found guilty of aggravated child abuse and sentenced to 10 years in prison for consensual oral sex with a 15-year-old girl in 2003. He was 17 at the time and has now served 27 months of his sentence. A judge will rule on Wilson’s release request sometime next week.
Wilson’s crime was captured on home videotape that the prosecution used as key evidence in Wilson’s conviction. It was announced today that copies of the same raw, explicit videotape used in court have been released to anyone who knows what form to fill out to request a copy.
The Douglas County district attorney’s office admits they have released “numerous copies” of the girl’s sex tape over the past three years, citing Georgia’s freedom of information law. In an email exchange between the district attorney and news station CBS46, Douglas County District Attorney David McDade stated: “I don’t know the exact number of people who have made open records requests in the case. by Genarlow Wilson”. Adding, “we do not maintain a list or database of the numerous requests.”
Georgia state representative Mary Margaret Oliver says distributing the tape violates child pornography and privacy laws. Former Georgia Dekalb County District Attorney, who is also a former Assistant US Attorney, Jeffrey Brickman, agrees.
Challenging Georgia’s Freedom of Information Law is a first for the state regarding potential violations surrounding the distribution of child pornography and the privacy rights of the 2 underage girls on the videotapes.