US lawmaker Nancy Mace displays her ‘naked silhouette’ during House hearing to push for stronger privacy laws

Republican Representative Nancy Mace of South Carolina made a striking revelation during a congressional hearing on Tuesday, May 20, alleging she was secretly filmed by her ex-fiancé, and shared photos of her “naked silhouette”.

Speaking at a House subcommittee hearing titled “Breach of Trus: Surveillance in Private Spaces”, Mace described finding footage of herself captured without her consent.

“Freedom is not a theory. It is the right to breathe. It is the right to dress and undress, to sleep without someone’s camera filming your naked body,” she declared during her remarks during a House Oversight Committee hearing on privacy. “The Founders wrote liberty in parchment, but hidden cameras erase it in pixels.”

“That naked silhouette is my body”

Standing beside a black-and-white image showing a circled silhouette, the congresswoman identified the figure as herself, captured in a private moment.

“Behind me is a screenshot from one of the videos I found of myself. The yellow circle, this naked silhouette, is my naked body,” Mace told the committee.

“I didn’t know that I had been filmed. I didn’t give my consent. I didn’t give my permission,” she added, claiming that her ex-fiancé Patrick Bryant had secretly recorded her and saved the footage for more than three years.

She claimed he had also filmed other women "without their knowledge, without their permission, and without their consent."

Mace calls for stronger laws

The congresswoman used her platform to call for legislative action: “Today I exposed a monster whose victims deserve justice. The victims also deserve stronger federal and state laws to protect them,” she wrote on X (formerly Twitter), sharing clips from the hearing.

“To other potential victims, I want you to know, ‘I have your back.’ I would run through a brick wall to protect women and girls in South Carolina,” she added.

Bryant denies allegations

Following Mace’s testimony, Patrick Bryant issued a statement on Facebook strongly denying the accusations.

“I categorically deny the false and outrageous claims made by Nancy Mace. I have never raped anyone. I have never hidden cameras. I have never harmed any woman,” he stated. “These accusations are not just false—they are malicious and deeply personal.”

Bryant accused Mace of using the congressional platform to make legally protected claims. “Nancy Mace made these claims only while standing in Congress, purportedly shielded by legal immunity,” he said. “If she believed them to be true... she would say them outside the chamber... and pursue them through proper legal channels. She has not done so, because she cannot.”

Legal and political fallout unclear

It remains unclear whether Mace plans to pursue legal action against Bryant. However, her statements are likely to intensify discussions around digital privacy, surveillance laws, and protections for victims of non-consensual filming.