Redeem now - Christine Chandler, known as Chris Chan online, has been released by court order according to VINE.
- Chandler was arrested on August 1, 2021, and charged with incest.
- A Central Virginia Regional Jail representative confirmed to Insider that Chandler was not in custody on March 28.
Christine Chandler, an internet personality known as Chris Chan who was arrested in 2021 and charged with incest, has reportedly been released by court order.
On March 27, social media users reported receiving notification of Chandler's release by VINE, a custody request system that makes criminal case information available to the public. Later that day, Chandler's VINE record was updated to state she was out of custody and released by court order.
Chandler was issued a transportation order on March 27, according to the Virginia court's information system. On March 28, a Central Virginia Regional Jail representative confirmed to Insider that no one with the last name of Chandler was in custody.
Chandler was arrested on August 1, 2021, outside of a Virginia hotel and charged with incest after a phone call and a series of screenshots were posted on Kiwi Farms in which a speaker, purported to be then-39-year-old Chandler, discussed sexual interactions with her then-79-year-old mother. The text messages purportedly from Chandler also mentioned her mother allegedly having "memory problems."
In Virginia, engaging in sexual intercourse with one's father or mother is a Class 5 felony and is punishable by up to ten years in prison.
In an August 2016 Facebook status posted on Chandler's account, she defended a mother and son who reportedly said they were in love, per the Daily Mail at the time. In the status, Chandler wrote that she had "dreams of having sex" with her mother, but stated that she had never acted on them.
Chandler, who has been called "the most documented person" in internet history, had been trolled by the internet for over a decade prior to her August 2021 arrest. She is widely considered to be one of the most famous victims of mass trolling and cyberbullying.
In 2007, users on the fringe messaging board 4chan discovered Chandler's comic, Sonichu — "an eerie blend" of cartoon characters Pikachu and Sonic the Hedgehog, as Insider's Kieran Press-Reynolds previously reported — and began digging into her life. In the following years, trolls extensively documented Chandler's life both online and in person — leaking emails, private diary entries, and personal conversations, as Insider's Steven Asarch previously reported. Sometimes, trolls impersonated potential romantic partners.
Experts told Insider Chandler's reported autism spectrum disorder and her transgender identity could have made her more vulnerable to online harassment.
"Ms. Chandler's frequent and sometimes over the top presence on the internet is partly a product of mental health issues causing misguided attention seeking and often provocative engagement with others," Chandler's attorney, David Heilberg, said in a statement provided to Insider in 2021. (It was unclear if Heilberg was referring to Chandler's autism diagnosis, which is a neurological disorder, and he did not respond to a request for clarification).
At present, it's unclear where Chandler is and why the court ordered her release. Chandler's next hearing is currently scheduled for August 8, according to the Virginia court's information system.
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