Online vaccine discussion turned ugly
After a Facebook discussion about vaccines, Dylan Stephens sent a woman a video featuring people being shot in the head.
In the Nelson District Court on Monday, Stephens, 35, was sentenced on a charge of distributing objectionable material, having earlier pleaded guilty.
In her sentencing, Judge Jo Rielly read the police summary of facts in court. Stephens and his victim were not known to each other, Rielly said.
In August 2021, the woman, who is involved in the New Zealand healthcare system, was taking part in a conversation on Facebook, the summary said.
The woman was concerned about the nature of some of the posts, which contained anti-vaccination information. She responded by posting evidencebased information from a trusted website, the summary said.
Stephens then private messaged the woman on Facebook, suggesting that she should ‘‘return to your own country’’.
‘‘You didn’t know her, or how long she had lived in New Zealand,’’ Rielly told Stephens.
Stephens then sent the woman links to antivaccination websites. The pair had a brief exchange, during which Stephens abused her, using swear words.
Stephens then blocked the woman, and she thought this was the end of the matter. However, the following day, Stephens unblocked the woman, and sent her a minute-long video clip with explicit material, featuring people being shot in the head and the body.
The woman considered the material ‘‘very graphic’’, and reported the incident to the police.
Police were ‘‘very concerned’’ that
Stephens had access to the video, and that he had distributed it, Rielly said. Stephens’ actions were ‘‘extremely concerning’’, she said.
‘‘No matter what your views are on vaccination mandates, or vaccinations generally, this is simply unacceptable.’’
In the woman’s victim impact statement, she had described herself as ‘‘mature and robust’’. However, despite this, the incident had a ‘‘detrimental impact’’ on her, the judge said.
‘‘Nobody should have to view that kind of material, besides the fact it was illegal to distribute it.’’ Judge Rielly noted that Stephens had similar previous convictions. ‘‘That makes this offending more serious and concerning.’’
She convicted Stephens and ordered him to pay reparation of $750.