A state representative from Franklin accused of posting nude images of a woman to the internet without her consent pleaded not guilty this week to violating New Hampshire’s “revenge porn” statute.
Rep. Bryan Morse, a first-term Republican, waived his arraignment and was scheduled for trial in April. If convicted, he could face up to 7 years in prison.
Morse was arrested in November by Nashua police after allegedly posting two photos of a woman on Reddit without her knowledge. The images depicted the woman’s face and her bare breasts and included her first name in the posting, according to an arrest warrant unsealed this week.
In an interview with police, Morse denied posting the images. Since his arrest, he has claimed in social media posts that he is being targeted because of his political activism.
As a lawmaker, Morse has made frequent public statements warning about the dangers of pornography in public schools and the risks that he claims transgender people pose to “a woman’s right to privacy.” Morse has advocated for legislation to ban books and other materials deemed obscene from public schools. He is also a frequent critic of trans rights on social media.
There is no indication in the police affidavit, however, that the victim sought police involvement because of Morse’s politics.
Following his arrest, Morse was removed from the House Education Policy Committee by Speaker Sherman Packard. Morse participated in Wednesday’s House session, including casting votes.
On Thursday, Morse told NHPR that he was limited about what he could say due to the ongoing criminal case, but said that “more will come to light during this process.”
A threat to arrest his alleged victim
The arrest warrant unsealed this week sheds new light on Morse’s interactions with the alleged victim in the case, who is identified in court records by her initials, L.S.
According to a police affidavit, Morse and L.S. first communicated through Facebook in April. She alleges that they subsequently exchanged nude images of each other, before agreeing to meet in person in a Nashua park in May, which culminated in the two of them having oral sex in his vehicle.
L.S. subsequently learned that Morse was married and attempted to contact his wife through Facebook. On May 16, Morse called L.S., upset about her attempts to notify his wife, according to the arrest warrant. Later that day, L.S. was notified by an ex-boyfriend that there were nude photos of her on Reddit.
An account labeled “BusinessMurky9719” posted the images in two separate forums, including a group for swingers in New Hampshire.
In addition to notifying the police that afternoon about the nude photos, L.S. also posted a public message on Facebook criticizing Morse for his alleged conduct.
“Shout out to Bryan Morse - NH State Representative, Franklin, for posting naked photos of someone online when he gets caught cheating on his wife,” L.S. wrote. “Quite the catch to have in office.”
According to the police report, Morse then left an expletive-laced voicemail for L.S., threatening to press charges against her because she was “interfering with an elected official.”
“I can pursue legal action that will put you behind bars for years,” he told her, according to court records. “. . . Last chance to take it down, part our goddamn ways, or you will be arrested by the end of next week.”
The photos on Reddit were deleted, and the BusinessMurky9719 account was also taken down. But Nashua police obtained a search warrant for both Google and Reddit, and both companies turned over records linking Morse’s home address and phone number to the Reddit account.
In a statement to NHPR Thursday, Morse said that his “name will be cleared from false accusations.”
“Just going to take time,” he added.
