In September 2025, Michigan representative John Fitzgerald introduced legislation that requires students and parents to be educated about sextortion. The legislation, titled House Bill 4848, adds new language to the revised school code and strengthens Michigan’s sextortion law. The bill builds on state lawmakers’ previous efforts to combat the crime and currently sits in a House committee.
What is House Bill 4848?
HB 4848 is a bipartisan bill that requires Michigan’s Department of Education to distribute a notice to public school entities about sextortion education. The bill describes sextortion as a form of child sexual exploitation, in which someone threatens to publicly expose a minor’s explicit images without consent. The perpetrator typically demands sexual favors, more content, or money to keep the images private.
The notice, which is an informational document, includes the definition of sextortion, state laws regarding the crime, and the contact info for the Office of School Safety. It’s required that the notice is sent to school personnel, students in grades 6 to 12, and parents or legal guardians. The bill also requires school boards in Michigan to adopt a policy to annually share educational materials about sextortion with students, personnel, and parents. Furthermore, the materials must come from trusted sources like the NCMEC, FBI, or Office for Victims of Crime.
The Threat of Sextortion Against Minors
The NCMEC received over 26,000 sextortion reports from minors in 2023. This is a 10,000+ increase in reports from 2022. The stark spike in sextortion cases involving minors has alerted law enforcement of the threat.
The FBI officially released a statement centered around the danger of sextortion against minors in January 2024. According to the FBI, victims are typically boys ages 14 to 17. However, everyone is at risk of being targeted.
“Protecting children is one of the highest priorities of the FBI,” said Special Agent in Charge Douglas DePodesta. “We need parents and caregivers to work with us to prevent this crime before it happens and help children come forward if it does.”
Sextortionists find children to be easier targets since they have a lack of knowledge about scam tactics. Minors are also more willing to trust strangers over the internet. However, the emotional and psychological damage to children is severe and, in some cases, can lead to devastating consequences.
Origins of the House Bill 4848
Michigan’s legislative response to sextortion was sparked by the case of Jordan DeMay. In March 2022, Jordan DeMay was 17 years old living in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. He received a follow request and began chatting with a girl on Instagram. She appeared to be around his age and supposedly had a mutual friend. Their conversation started out as innocent flirting but quickly became intimate when she suggested trading explicit images.
Once Jordan complied, the brief moment of vulnerability quickly turned to horror. The predators immediately threatened to send the images to Jordan’s family and friends unless he paid them $1,000. Jordan sent $300 but the demands didn’t stop. The sextortionists continued making threats. Eventually, Jordan confided that the emotional distress was too much to handle. However, the criminals’ threats became even more hostile. Just six hours after the blackmail began, Jordan tragically took his own life.
The devastating story of Jordan DeMay inspired Michigan lawmakers to pass a package of laws that enhance criminal penalties and sentencing guidelines for sextortion. Coined “Jordan D’s Law”, Public Acts 261 and 262 went into effect on April 4th, 2025. HB 4848 is the latest legislative effort to continue combating sextortion and protecting children from being targeted.
The Legal Fight Against Sextortion
With sextortion escalating into a national epidemic, both state and federal lawmakers are taking action to combat the crime. The nation took a major step forward when President Trump signed the TAKE IT DOWN Act into law in May 2025. The bill criminalizes non-consensual intimate image abuse and requires online platforms to remove NCII content quickly.
Our experts have long supported stronger legal protections for victims of sextortion. However, recent legal efforts suggest change is occurring for the better. With every law passed, victims have more avenues to pursue justice and hold perpetrators accountable.
To learn more about both federal and state sextortion laws, check out our article about Sextortion Laws Across the U.S.
