Criminal Justice
Man who generated sexually explicit deepfakes may be first convicted under new federal law
An Ohio man who harassed women with sexually graphic artificial intelligence-generated images may be the first person in the country convicted under a new federal law, according to prosecutors. (Photo illustration by Sara Wadford/ABA Journal/Shutterstock)
An Ohio man who harassed women with sexually graphic artificial intelligence-generated images may be the first person in the country convicted under a new federal law, according to prosecutors.
The U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of Ohio charged James Strahler, 37, with cyberstalking, producing obscene visuals of child sexual abuse and publishing digital forgeries, also known as deepfakes. He pleaded guilty Tuesday.
According to coverage by USA Today, U.S. Attorney Dominick Gerace thinks that Strahler is the first person convicted under the Take It Down Act, enacted in 2025, which combats nonconsensual intimate imagery and deepfakes.
Prosecutors say Strahler used AI to generate over 700 nonconsensual images and videos of women and minors. He also sent harassing phone calls and messages and used online posts to target some victims, leveraging more than 24 AI platforms and 100 web-based models to create images and deepfakes.
Court records indicate that from December 2024 to June 2025, Strahler sent messages to three former romantic partners that featured real and AI-generated nudity.
See also:
The End of Reality? How to combat deepfakes in our legal system
Deepfakes mean ‘everyone will have to expert up’ for employment and divorce cases, panelists say
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