Rock Hill man arrested on SC ‘revenge porn’ law for sending pictures, sheriff says
A Rock Hill man has been arrested under a new South Carolina law that the governor said makes what is “commonly known as revenge porn” illegal, according to the York County Sheriff’s Office and court documents.
Deputies charged Marley Preston Dockery, 25, on Friday morning, weeks after an investigation started following a complaint made in December , according to an arrest warrant and incident report obtained by The Herald.
A person contacted deputies after Dockery sent nude and sexually explicit pictures and video of Dockery and a woman to that third person by phone message, according to allegations in an incident report.
Detectives investigated, and on Thursday a judge issued a warrant to arrest Dockery that alleges he sent the pictures and video of the woman without her consent. Dockery remained in the York County jail Friday afternoon after his bail was set at $5,000, according to law enforcement and online York County court records.
The new laws: Consequences for sexual extortion
S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster signed the law about “unauthorized disclosure of intimate images” in May 2025 after it unanimously passed both the state Senate and House in the General Assembly. In a statement released to the public in May, McMaster’s office stated the new law “establishes new criminal penalties for the unauthorized disclosure of intimate images, commonly known as revenge porn.”
The new law also modernized existing law over use of artificial intelligence and other computer-enhanced technology concerning intimate images.
“As technology advances, so too must our laws to keep pace with emerging threats and protect personal privacy,” McMaster said in the 2025 statement. “This legislation sends a clear message that those who harm others by sharing explicit images without their consent will be held fully accountable.”
The law took effect two years after South Carolina enacted “Gavin’s Law,” which targets offenders who sexually exploit people online through blackmail. The law is named in honor of Rock Hill teen Gavin Guffey, son of S.C. Rep. Brandon Guffey. It was signed into law ceremonially in Rock Hill in 2023 after it also passed unanimously.
Gavin Guffey was 17 when he committed suicide in 2022 after a man in Nigeria allegedly sexually exploited him over online photos. His father spearheaded the effort to create tougher South Carolina and federal laws, and remains a national advocate for tougher online protections.
