In July 2013, a woman quarreled with her then-lover, Seattle police detective David Blackmer, at his home. The two had been dating for more than seven months, but the woman had just discovered that Blackmer, a 17-year veteran of the force, was actually married. And now she was confronting him in front of his wife.
The officer, furious that the woman had exposed the relationship, shoved her off the porch, promising that he would “ruin her life” and “get back at her.” He shortly made good on the threats, posting sexually explicit photographs of the woman online.
In January, Blackmer pleaded guilty to cyberstalking and domestic violence charges and was sentenced to 90 days in jail. On Monday, five months after his conviction, the Seattle police department finally fired him.
Blackmer was hardly the first man who thought he could punish and shame his ex by posting sexually explicit photos, a practice known as revenge porn. His conviction and firing puts him alongside some dubious company in what’s become a law enforcement crackdown on both revenge porn peddlers and perpetrators. Across the U.S., courts are doling out major settlements to victims while one state after another outlaws revenge porn outright including, most recently, Arizona and Wisconsin.
In Washington, two bills that would outlaw the “distribution of intimate images” are still waiting to pass the state legislature. As in Blackmer’s case, however, even when revenge porn itself isn’t illegal, perpetrators often commit other crimes on their way to posting the image. That’s what happened to the Hunter Moore, who was indicted in January on hacking and identity theft charges related to his infamous website Is Anyone Up.
Blackmer, 44, began his affair after meeting the woman on an online dating site in December 2012. Following the confrontation at his home, Blackmer created a fake Facebook account where he posted explicit photographs of the woman, including some he’d snapped of her while the pair were having sex and others she’d sent at his request for “sexy” pictures, according to court documents.
“The woman told our investigators that these postings caused her embarrassment and fear,” a Seattle police sergeant said in a press conference shortly after Blackmer’s arrest.
According to the victim, Blackmer’s photos spread beyond anonymous strangers on Facebook. the victim alleged that her “mother, brother, aunts, underage children of her aunts, friends, and people in her church” had seen the photos.
“I feel the conduct was egregious, and I don’t believe the chief had any other choice in this case but termination,” Seattle Police Guild president Ron Smith told KIRO news. Blackmer had been put on paid administrative leave shortly following the arrest.
Photo via KING 5
