Comparing women to mollusks is not smart media strategy for Ren Bostelaar’s lawyer

Late last week it came to light that Ren Bostelaar, a Toronto photographer who gained notoriety as one of the people behind the popular Twitter account @stats_canada, had been accused of posting intimate pictures of women online without their consent.

READ MORE: Police investigate after woman alleges Toronto photographer posted nude photos without consent

Several women have come forward to allege that the photos, along with information such as full real names, social media handles and identifiable pictures, were posted to the website 4chan, which has come to be known as the internet hub for racist and misogynistic content sharing all under the veil of anonymity.

Toronto police have confirmed they are investigating this case as a criminal matter, and as of the publishing of this article, have not laid any charges.

After being confronted by some of the women in a private Facebook message, Bostelaar took to Facebook to issue a public apology on his own account page. The message has since been deleted, likely at the behest of his legal counsel, but here is the message in its entirety:

Bostelaar’s lawyer, Sam Goldstein, joined us on Toronto’s Talk Radio AM640’s The Morning Show to give his client’s perspective.

LISTEN: Sam Goldstein joins the AM640 Morning Show with Matt Gurney and Supriya Dwivedi

The interview was a prime example of why lawyers who represent their client’s interests in the media should have to undergo proper media training. Among other things, Goldstein seemed unfamiliar with the breadth of his client’s own admission of wrongdoing through his Facebook account and likened the Criminal Code section dealing with the non-consensual distribution of intimate images to the Criminal Code provision overseeing oyster beds, stating: “You know there is a criminal code offence for disturbing oyster beds. I don’t think it would be a moral offence to disturb oyster beds, yet we have it in our criminal code.”

Pro tip from someone who has done some work in litigation communications: when trying to defend your client against allegations that make it seem like he does not value women, it is probably best not to flippantly compare the potential violation of a human woman to that of a mollusk.

Goldstein was correct in pointing out that not every “moral failing” should require the criminal court system, but what Bostelaar is being accused of isn’t simply a moral or ethical issue, but a patently clear legal one. Under section 162.1 the Criminal Code, the publication or distribution of intimate images of someone knowing that that person did not give consent is punishable by either summary conviction or a maximum prison term of five years.

Another perplexing aspect of the interview was Goldstein’s framing of Bostelaar’s intent. On more than one occasion in the less than six-minute interview, Goldstein stated that Bostelaar did not post any of the images or any coinciding information pertaining to the women with malicious intent.

Putting aside the very grave allegations against Bostelaar which almost necessitate bad faith, as well as the admission of wrongdoing by Bostelaar himself in which he readily admits to posting images of women beyond their intended audience, the relevant Criminal Code provision does not require that the accused acted with “malicious intent.”

The accusations leveled at Bostelaar are disappointingly familiar in the digital age: a woman’s privacy is violated because intimate photographs of her are distributed to people other than the intended viewer, without her consent. However, perhaps even more disappointingly familiar is the reaction that these types of stories bring about.

People are often quick to blame the women in these situations, whether it’s Jennifer Lawrence or a female marine, without considering that the men disseminating the photos are the ones actually involved in unethical and potentially illegal behaviour. It’s the “boys will be boys” mentality applied to grown men who are fully aware and in control of their actions.

Men who do what Bostelaar is being accused of will always exist. Websites like 4chan ensure that they can find one another and rejoice in knowing that they are part of a seedy community that thrives on treating women like objects.

While the Canadian criminal justice system is under- and ill-equipped to deal with all aspects of online misogyny, we do have legal tools at our disposal to deal with some of the more pressing issues. We should be using them, if for no other reason than to create precedent and clarity as to how the law should be applied.

Supriya Dwivedi is host of The Morning Show on Toronto’s Talk Radio AM640 and a columnist for Global News.