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Estranged husband gets suspended sentence in revenge porn case

Posted at 1:14 PM, Jul 02, 2019
and last updated 2019-07-02 17:24:32-04

RICHMOND, Va. -- A Norfolk man has been convicted of sending revenge pornography of his estranged wife to a member of the Virginia General Assembly.

William Tyler Sims, 23, pleaded no contest to one count of computer trespass and one count of computer harassment on Tuesday. The judge convicted Sims on both counts and sentenced him to 12 months in jail for each count, with three years suspended.

The sentencing means Sims will not serve an active jail sentence.

Sims is the estranged husband of the victim, who was serving as an intern for the member of the Virginia General Assembly at the time of the incident.

The case stemmed from an incident on Jan. 17, 2018.

A member of the Virginia General Assembly received sexually suggestive messages and images of the victim, according to Capitol Police. Investigators say the images were sent using the victim's email.

An investigation revealed that the images were sent by Sims using an email account belonging to his wife.

The Norfolk man was initially charged with seven misdemeanors which are each punishable by up to one year in prison and a $2,500 fine. In exchange for his pleas, prosecutors elected against pursuing the other five charges.

Sims was also fined $100 for each count and ordered to have no contact with the victim except when necessary for their divorce proceedings.

“I’d like to thank our investigators for their response and hard work to help bring this case to a conviction,” said Col. Anthony S. Pike, the Capitol Police chief. “Employees shouldn’t have to worry about invasion of privacy or harassment when they come to work.”

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