Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens signed a law criminalizing revenge porn - just before he resigned amid allegations of the same act

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Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens signed a law criminalizing revenge porn - just before he resigned amid allegations of the same act

Eric Greitens

Jeff Roberson/AP

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  • Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens signed a bill criminalizing the sharing or threat of "revenge porn" Friday before he resigned amid allegations he used a nude photo to blackmail a woman.
  • Greitens has been facing pressure to resign since a bombshell report detailed an allegedly violent encounter he had with a woman in a 2015 extramarital affair.

Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens signed a bill on Friday that criminalized the sharing or threat of revenge porn before he resigned amid accusations of the same act.

The bill was one of 77 Greitens signed on his last day, his office said in a statement. The law makes the "nonconsensual dissemination of private sexual images" and "threatening the nonconsensual dissemination of private sexual images" felony crimes..

"The conservative reform agenda is working in Missouri, and I'm proud of what we've delivered," the former governor said in a statement on the legislation.

Greitens announced his intention to resign last week after months of bipartisan pressure prompted by a bombshell report that detailed how Greitens had spanked, slapped, grabbed, shoved, and called a woman derogatory names during an extramarital affair they had before he was elected.

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The report also contained the woman's allegations Greitens had threatened to blackmail her with a nude photo. Greitens admitted to the affair but both he and his lawyer have repeatedly denied the revenge porn allegation.

The woman, Greitens' former hairdresser, described in the report how he blindfolded her, taped her hands, and told her, "you're never going to mention my name, otherwise there will be pictures of [you] everywhere."

Greitens borrowed one of President Donald Trump's oft-used phrases when he referred to charges and the investigation by Missouri officials as a "political witch hunt" to press last month.

The new law Greitens signed cannot be retroactively applied to his case.

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