Playboy Playmate Dani Mathers faces an invasion of privacy charge in connection with the naked photo of a 70-year-old woman she posted online, officials said Friday.
Mathers shared the picture of the woman in the shower at a Los Angeles gym on Snapchat in July and wrote, “If I can’t unsee this then you can’t either.” City Attorney Mike Feuer announced one count of invasion of privacy against Mathers, 29.
“Body shaming is humiliating, with often painful, long-term consequences. It mocks and stigmatizes its victims, tearing down self-respect and perpetuating the harmful idea that our unique physical appearances should be compared to air-brushed notions of ‘perfect,'” Feuer said in a statement.
“What really matters is our character and humanity. While body-shaming, in itself, is not a crime, there are circumstances in which invading one’s privacy to accomplish it can be. And we shouldn’t tolerate that.”
Prosecutors filed the rap against Mathers after the woman she shamed told detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department that she wanted to press charges against Mathers, according to TMZ.
The charge carries up to six months behind bars and a $1,000 fine if she’s found guilty, Feuer noted. A Los Angeles Superior Court judge scheduled her arraignment for Nov. 28.
Mathers’ attorney, Tom Mesereau, said he had learned of the rap against his client Friday.
“I am very disappointed that Dani Mathers was charged with any violation,” Mesereau said in a statement. “She never tried to invade anyone’s privacy and never tried to break any laws.”
Mathers deleted the post, which also included a selfie with her hand over in face in mock horror. She has apologized and said she meant to send the picture to a friend rather than share it publicly.
“There is no excuse,” Mathers wrote on Twitter. “I understand fully the magnitude of this post that I have hurt a lot of people, women. Body shaming is not okay … and not something to joke about.”
Mathers lost a regular gig with a local radio’s morning talk show following the Snapchat post. Executives with L.A. Fitness also banned her from the gym the day after the July 14 post.
Mathers “is not permitted back at any club, ever,” L.A. Fitness executives told the gossip site at the time.
