Kentucky lawmaker, among dozens targeted by alleged social media stalker, plans to explore consent legislation

LEITCHFIELD, Ky. (FOX 56) — Dozens of women in Grayson County have found themselves victims of online stalking, leading Kentucky State Police to make an arrest. Now, one victim, a state lawmaker, is hoping to turn the incident into action.

“If I could talk to these young women, I want to say, first off, I’m so sorry this happened to you. I’m so sorry that you were personally violated in this way. This is unacceptable behavior. And what we’re doing is we’re standing up to it,” Rep. Samara Heavrin (R-Leitchfield) told FOX 56 News.

Heavrin said she was heartbroken not just for the violation she felt, but for the friends and neighbors she’s known for years who found themselves unexpected victims in an uncomfortable situation.

“A friend had texted me a Facebook post and said, ‘Hey, you might want to check to see if you’re on here.’ Heavrin explained. “These weren’t bad photos. Most of the girls were clothed. These were just everyday photos taken. You know, my Christmas card photos got on there. People’s senior pictures got put on there.”

On Monday, Kentucky State Police arrested 29-year-old Zackery Robinson on 27 counts of stalking. The complaint alleges Robinson took photos from victims’ social media and posted them to a pornographic site.

The complaint said more than 18,000 photos of adult women and underage girls were posted, and a large majority of the posts are of Grayson County residents. And while the content of the photos may not be explicit, comments on the site are.

“A young lady, her senior picture is on there. Somebody under a disguised name commented and said they would like to take her deep into the woods with chloroform. That is unacceptable. And these people have to be held accountable,” Heavrin said.

Heavrin plans to use the time between now and the next session to explore how laws can be strengthened around voyeurism and consent, as well as revisiting any loopholes in a pornographic age verification law passed last year in House Bill 278.

“If you want to post a photo on an explicit website, you should have the consent to be able to do that. Someone else shouldn’t make that decision for you,” Heavrin said.