Attorney general bill targets nonconsensual sexually explicit 'deepfakes'; committee advances it
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Summary
Senate Bill 41, introduced by the attorney general to criminalize creation and distribution of digitally fabricated sexual images of identifiable adults, passed the House Judiciary Committee 8–3 after proponents cited harms from deepfakes and opponents warned subsection for AI content may be overly broad.
Attorney General Marty Jackley told the House Judiciary Committee that Senate Bill 41 updates criminal invasion‑of‑privacy law to cover digitally fabricated sexual material (deepfakes) depicting identifiable adults and would make certain AI‑generated images a class‑5 felony.
"We now see AI being inappropriately used on adults," Jackley said, describing a pending local case and arguing the law must define and criminalize intentional creation or distribution of fabricated sexual images without consent.
Prosecutors’ groups and police chiefs supported the bill as a tool to protect victims. Eric Erickson of the State’s Attorneys Association and Savannah Cruz of the Police Chiefs Association urged the committee to adopt the bill, saying it would help investigators and hold perpetrators accountable.
Tara Larson, a lawyer representing criminal‑defense interests, opposed the measure as drafted and urged caution on the AI subsection. Larson argued the proposed classification (a class‑5 felony for AI‑generated images) could sweep too broadly, criminalize casual or joking uses of generative models and create disparate outcomes compared with existing misdemeanor standards for analogous conduct.
Jackley replied that the statute requires lack of consent, intent to gratify or harass and harm to the depicted individual; he said the draft’s definitions are designed to distinguish trivial or consensual uses from harmful deepfakes.
After committee discussion, the House Judiciary Committee voted 8–3 in favor of a due‑pass motion for SB41. Members said they may refine language later, but several expressed support for stronger tools to punish exploitative uses of AI to fabricate sexual images.