Playmate Accused Of Body Shaming May Face Criminal Charges

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MIAMI (CBSMiami) - A Playboy playmate accused of body shaming could soon face criminal charges.

Dani Mathers, Playmate of the year in 2015, posted a photo of another woman in a gym locker room and now that woman has been identified and is helping police.

As a Playmate, Mathers is used to having her body on display but back in July, the 29-year old captured an "unsuspecting" elderly woman on camera changing in the locker room of an L.A. Fitness gym.

She captioned the nude photo, "If I can't unsee this, then you can't either," before posting it to Snapchat.

"There is no question that by her own caption that she intended to shame this woman and that's the nub of the case," said CBS News Legal Analyst Rikki Klieman.

If charged, Mathers could face up to six months in jail for violating California privacy laws.

"In a statement, an attorney for Mathers said the model, "never tried to hurt anyone at any time and never intended to violate any law."

"I know that body shaming is wrong and that's not what I'm about," said Mathers back in July.

After the incident, Mathers apologized in a Snapchat video and on Twitter.

"That photo was supposed to be part of a personal conversation with a girlfriend and because I am new to Snapchat I really didn't realize I had posted it and that's a huge mistake," said Mathers.

"For heaven's sake, this elderly woman we should be applauding her. She's at the gym trying to make herself better," said Klieman. "You can rest assured that this is a case that is really going to cause deterrence for not only the person who took the picture but also for others."

Following the incident, Mathers was banned from L.A. Fitness for life and made most of her social media accounts private.

The city attorney hopes to decide soon whether or not charges should be filed.