Revenge porn ex taken off sex offenders’ list
‘Upset and humiliation’
A MAN who shared an explicit image of his ex-girlfriend on social media has won his bid to be removed from the sex offenders’ register.
Barry Sorrell, 30, was jailed for four months for the ‘revenge porn’ incident.
He posted the intimate image on Facebook after his two-year relationship broke down.
His ex-partner was horrified when a friend told her about the photo and called police.
Sorrell, of Gourock, Renfrewshire, admitted posting the image in October last year, with the intention of causing fear, alarm or distress.
At Greenock Sheriff Court in November, he was jailed for four months, banned from contacting his victim for two years and put on the sex offenders’ register for seven years.
But the Sheriff Appeal Court in Edinburgh has ruled Sorrell can be removed from the list – as there was no ‘sexual motivation’ to his actions.
A written judgment by Sheriff Principal Mhairi Stephen, QC, sitting alongside Sheriff Peter Braid, states: ‘Simply because the offence involves a contravention of legislation entitled the Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016 does not necessarily mean that the true nature of the offending is sexual.
‘The appellant’s conduct was a determination to cause significant upset, embarrassment and humiliation.
‘The appellant’s conduct towards the complainer is criminal behaviour and he has been punished for that.
‘We do not consider the offence nor the motivation for the offending involves a significant sexual element, even though there was a sexual element to the method chosen by the appellant to inflict harm and distress on his ex-partner.
‘Although this offence is undoubtedly nasty and must have been extremely distressing for the complainer, the question whether there is a significant sexual aspect ought to be answered in the negative.’
Sorrell told officers he had been drunk when he posted the photo, which was removed after 25 minutes. He said he had been trying to get a reaction from his former partner.
Sorrell’s lawyers said the photo had been taken with the woman’s consent and there was no ‘deviance or voyeurism’ involved.
Sheriff Stephen said the sheriff who dealt with Sorrell made an error by placing him on the sex offenders’ register without hearing the circumstances of the case, adding that the ‘certification process went off the rails’.
Legislation brought in by the Scottish Government in 2017 means those guilty of revenge porn can be jailed for up to five years.