Rudy Giuliani's 'Borat 2' Moment Is Not 'Revenge Porn': Legal Analyst
Although Rudy Giuliani doesn’t come across very well at all in the new “Borat” film, he would likely have problems if he attempted to sue comedian and actor Sacha Baron Cohen.
A scene in the movie, which debuts Friday on Amazon Prime, shows the former New York City mayor appearing to touch his genitals in front of a woman he believed was a journalist but was actually 24-year-old actor Maria Bakalova.
The scene takes place in a hotel suite rigged with hidden cameras. When Giuliani sits on the bed, Bakalova appears to remove his microphone, and then Giuliani lies back and reaches into his pants.
That’s when Baron Cohen, playing Borat, bursts into the room and, misstating Bakalova’s age, says, “She’s 15, she’s too old for you!”
Conservatives such as Pizzagate troll Jack Posobiec are arguing that Giuliani is a victim of “revenge porn,” but actual legal experts say that’s not the case.
Although revenge porn has been against the law in New York since last year, the statute only goes after anyone who shares an “intimate image” — or photo of someone naked or exposed — without that person’s consent, according to Law & Crime.
Since Giuliani isn’t seen naked in the movie, the chances he can sue for revenge porn are slim, according to criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor Julie Rendelman.
“I do not believe that Cohen’s posting of an image or video of Giuliani with his hand down his pants rises to a violation of New York’s revenge porn law,” she told Law & Crime. “To be guilty of violating such a law would require that the posting depict an ‘unclothed or exposed intimate part’ of a person. Further, the word ‘Intimate’ is defined in New York Law as ‘naked genitals, pubic area or anus.’”
Therefore, unless the film shows Guiliani’s private parts, it doesn’t violate the law, Rendelman said.
Another sticking point: If the former mayor does sue for revenge porn, that could be seen as an...
