A former candidate for St. Paul City Council is facing felony charges after authorities say he violating the state’s “revenge porn” law.
David Martinez, 39, was charged Thursday in Ramsey County District Court with one count of non-consensual dissemination of private sexual images.
He is accused of posting a topless photo of a woman on his campaign website while he was a candidate for the city’s Ward 4 seat.
The incident took place July 14, a day after the woman filed for an order for protection against Martinez, according to the complaint.
Martinez’s estranged wife confirmed to an investigator that the photo was of her, St. Paul police have said.
The image was reportedly posted to the site David Martinez for City Council, Ward 4 as part of a blog post titled “Transparency,” the complaint said.
Following his arrest at the time, Martinez denied posting the image and said his campaign website had been hacked.
A forensic examination of his computer uncovered the image, as well as an email message with the photo attached to it that was sent from Martinez_Short@msn.com to Martinezward4@gmail.com on July 14, legal documents say.
The computer’s web history showed several visits to Martinez’s campaign site shortly after the email was sent, including to his “Transparency” blog post, authorities say.
The incident was one of several legal issues Martinez was allegedly involved in during his campaign for public office.
His campaign ended in August when he lost the primary to Mitra Jalali Nelson.
Martinez could not be reached for comment Thursday and no attorney was listed for him in court records.
He is scheduled to make his next court appearance on the allegations in February.