CYBER COURT

THE PEOPLE VS. THE DIGITAL OFFENDER

You are the jury. Two real New York State cybercrime cases will be presented. Read the charges, weigh the evidence, then deliver your verdict. After each ruling — see what actually happened in court. The gap between what you decided and what the law delivered? That's the conversation.

Cases are fictional composites based on real NYS Penal Law statutes and actual sentencing patterns. Not legal advice. Educational tool by Sign Me Up Cyber.

2NYS CASES

REALSTAT REVEALS

LIVEVERDICT VOTING

How this works: Read each case. Vote your verdict. Choose your sentence. Then hit Deliver Verdict to see what the court actually decided — and what the data shows about real cases like this.

CASE 01 OF 02

NY PENAL LAW §245.15 — CLASS A MISDEMEANOR

State v. Ryan M. — Unlawful Dissemination of an Intimate Image

VOLUNTEER READS ALOUD

THE FACTS

Maya and Ryan dated for eight months. When she ended the relationship, Ryan threatened to share intimate photos she had sent him during the relationship. She begged him not to.

He posted them anyway — on three platforms, tagged with her full name and workplace. Eleven days passed before her employer saw the posts and HR opened an investigation into her conduct.

Ryan has no prior criminal record. He told police he was "just angry." Maya took medical leave and eventually lost her position. She required therapy for anxiety and depression for over a year.

Your verdict — what does the jury say?

THE COURT RULES

Guilty — Class A Misdemeanor · NY Penal Law §245.15

364days maximum — same classification as shoplifting under $1,000

~68%of first-offense convictions end in conditional discharge — no jail

≤4people sentenced to actual jail in NYS for this charge in 2023

Ryan was found guilty. He received 18 months probation, a $500 fine, and a restraining order. No prison time. Maya lost her job, her professional reputation, and spent over a year in therapy. He went home.

THE LAW

NY Penal Law §245.15 — Unlawful Dissemination of an Intimate Image (enacted 2019)

A Class A Misdemeanor regardless of how many platforms, how many people saw it, or how much damage was done. A criminal conviction does not force removal of the images. Civil action under CRL §52-b is often the only path to real financial accountability. NYS has proposed a felony upgrade — it has not yet passed.

The law exists. What doesn't exist is sentencing that matches the harm. 52% of U.S. states have felony-level image abuse protections. New York is not one of them — yet. Document everything. Your paper trail is what determines whether a case sticks.

CASE 02 OF 02

18 U.S.C. §2261A — FEDERAL CYBERSTALKING STATUTE

State v. Derek T. — Interstate Stalking and Cyberstalking

VOLUNTEER READS ALOUD

THE FACTS

Simone ended a two-year relationship with Derek. Over the following four months, Derek sent over 340 messages across six different platforms. He created seven fake profiles — pretending to be her friends, her coworkers, and at one point her mother — to get her to respond.

When she blocked every account, he used a spoofed IP address to continue contact. Her employer was contacted anonymously twice with false allegations about her job performance. She filed three separate police reports over four months.

Derek told investigators Simone was "playing games" and he just "wanted to talk."

Your verdict — is this a federal crime?

THE COURT RULES

Guilty — Federal Crime · 18 U.S.C. §2261A

5 yrsmaximum federal prison sentence under §2261A

54%of cyberstalking cases are never prosecuted — the pattern is everything

3police reports filed — her paper trail made this prosecutable

The pattern made it prosecutable. Any single message is hard to charge. 340 messages across 6 platforms with fake profiles and a spoofed IP — that is a campaign. Between 2010–2020, only 412 federal cyberstalking cases were filed nationwide. That's 41 per year. Across the entire country.

THE LAW

18 U.S.C. §2261A — Federal Interstate Stalking and Cyberstalking

Covers any sustained pattern of electronic communications that causes substantial emotional distress. Does not require physical crossing of state lines. Report to FBI IC3 at ic3.gov — federal reports carry more weight than local police reports for digital crimes, even if you believe prosecution is unlikely. The data builds national cases against networks.

Deleted evidence is gone forever. Simone's three police reports and saved messages made this case. Screenshot before you block. Log every incident — date, platform, exact words. Volume is the evidence. The pattern is the crime.

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These cases are fictional composites created for educational purposes, based on real NYS Penal Law statutes and actual sentencing patterns. They do not represent any specific real case or individual. Not legal advice. If you are experiencing harassment, stalking, or digital abuse — contact the National DV Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or report cybercrime at ic3.gov.