In June of 2013, Christopher Hunt Cleveland was arrested for attempted voyeurism among other charges. A police officer witnessed Cleveland taking photos of several unsuspecting victims on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
This is a practice known as “upskirting”. Hundreds of photos were later obtained from his computer, which suggested that there were additional victims, from prior acts of voyeurism. In an even more shocking turn of events, the charges against Cleveland were later dropped. Washington, D.C. Superior Court Judge Juliet McKenna ruled that people in public have no “reasonable expectation of privacy”.
This is especially due to the ways in which the victims in this case were positioned. In the judge’s opinion, the women’s private areas were already visible to the public. Certain loopholes exist in the law that allow people to legitimately take these sorts of photos. As socially unacceptable as the actions are, the behavior does not fall in line with the legal definition of upskirting in Washington, D.C. Police must have probable cause that a crime was committed in order to make an arrest.
In addition, every element in the legal definition of a crime must be satisfied in order for a crime to actually take place. There is rising concern that many laws are not sufficient to protect women’s rights to privacy in public.
In fact, a Texas appellate court recently overturned a ban on upskirting photos. Women are cautioned to remain cognizant of voyeurs and take the necessary measures in order to protect their privacy in these situations.