Manitoba woman's lawsuit alleges ex-partner shared intimate images of her
Lawsuit claims she was contacted by stranger who described video; defendant denies sharing any images of her
Dianne Oliveira says she was told repeatedly that an intimate video of her — which she says was taken without her knowledge — was deleted, but a troubling message from a woman she didn't know made her question her ex-boyfriend's word.
Oliveira is now suing her ex-boyfriend, in one of the first tests of Manitoba legislation that lets victims of non-consensual distribution of sexual imagery sue for financial damages. The law took effect in 2016.
Oliveira claims in early May, a stranger told her in a private Facebook message that she believed she saw Oliveira in an intimate video, according to a affidavit Oliveira filed June 27 in the Manitoba Court of King's Bench in Winnipeg.
"My heart just sank, because I didn't know if it was real," Oliveira, who grew up in Winnipeg and now lives in Lorette, Man., said in an interview.
The allegations in her lawsuit have not been proven in court.
WATCH | Dianne Oliveira talks about what is was like to be told her ex-boyfriend shared intimate videos of her:
Oliveira's ex-boyfriend has yet to file a statement of defence.
He filed an affidavit last week in response to a judge's order that he reveal what intimate images might be in his possession and who he may have sent them to.
His affidavit claims that the only person he ever distributed the video to was Oliveira, via text message, and claims that "she deleted the video from my phone."
Oliveira's lawsuit seeks unspecified general and special damages.
Oliveira said in her affidavit that in November 2021, her then boyfriend made a video of them having sex without her knowledge. When he sent it to her by text message, she immediately asked him to delete it.
Oliveira said the stranger who later contacted her described details of the video, in which the couple was having sexual intercourse. The woman said she no longer had the video because she deleted it.
'Ultimate form of betrayal'
The stranger told Oliveira her best friend received the same video, while her husband got another intimate video of Oliveira, the court document says.
"How do you do this to another human being who you are supposed to be amicable with and who you once cared about so much? It's just this ultimate form of betrayal. It was just heart-wrenching," said Oliveira, who works as a service consultant for an auto dealership.
When she confronted her former partner about allegedly distributing the videos, he didn't apologize, she said in her affidavit.
"The defendant was both defensive and defiant: he admitted that he sent the videos but told me, 'It's not like it's a big deal, your face isn't in the video,'" she said in her court document.
"He expressed no remorse and did not apologize."
The defendant told Oliveira when their relationship ended in 2022 that he deleted the video and any other intimate images of her, and repeated that as recently as April 2023, she said.
The defendant's misconduct, which the statement of claim alleges is "intentional and malicious," is an example of "what is commonly referred to as 'revenge porn,'" the court document said.
"Revenge porn is a growing scourge that can have devastating and lifelong consequences for its victims (primarily girls and young women). The financial consequences to its perpetrators should be similarly devastating and lifelong."
The couple dated for about a year. They were together for two separate periods between 2020 and 2022, the statement of claim said.
In 2015, it became a criminal offence in Canada to knowingly distribute an intimate image of a person, without the consent of the person depicted in the image.
An intimate image is described in the Criminal Code as one in which the person is nude, is exposing his or her genital organs or anal region or breasts, or is engaged in explicit sexual activity.
Manitoba's Intimate Image Protection Act allows someone to seek financial compensation as a result of non-consensual distribution of sexual imagery.
Under a recent change to that law, beginning in May, the defendant in a civil lawsuit must now prove they had consent to share intimate images, which is an example of "reverse onus."
In her lawsuit, Oliveira waived her right to anonymity.
"I've gone through my emotions and I've felt what I needed to feel and all that pain that I felt," she said. "Now I need to use it for good."
In an earlier "revenge porn" case, Brittany Roque of Brandon, Man., was awarded $60,000 in damages last year, after intimate images of her were shared without her consent.
Kevin Toyne, the lawyer for the plaintiffs in both cases, said there are likely more victims who've had their intimate images shared without permission, but they don't come forward for a variety of reasons, including a fear they won't be taken seriously.
"And a lot of people still don't know that it's a crime, and that there's things you can do to fight back and you don't have to suffer in silence."
Nowadays, people choosing to make intimate images of themselves and sharing them is the "norm," said Lara Karaian, a criminology professor at Carleton University in Ottawa, who has studied the regulation of sexual images for nearly two decades.
The advent of digital technologies has brought an evolution in the way people express themselves sexually, she said. Some people aren't bothered by their images being shared, especially if identifying elements, such as their face or name, aren't attached to it, she said.
But that's different from Oliveira's allegations, Karaian said.
"People have the right to share what they want about themselves and their sexuality on their own terms when they want to, and when somebody else does that, that is something that is obviously cause for concern and potentially cause for some level of response or reprimand."
Oliveira said she tried to pursue criminal charges against the defendant, but the RCMP didn't appear to be making any progress and are no longer returning her calls.
An RCMP spokesperson said police can't comment on specific cases, but these types of allegations are taken very seriously.
Oliveira's affidavit said since the videos were shared, she's been distracted at work.
She got into a car accident in a parking lot because she wasn't focused, she said.
It's changed her usually happy, bubbly self, she said, and she doesn't want what she alleges happened to overtake her life.
"I'm afraid that I was going to be angry for a long time, and that's not my personality."
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