Aldermen Move To Ban "Upskirt" Photos
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Two aldermen have proposed an ordinance that would make it illegal to snap so-called "upskirt photos" in Chicago.
WBBM Newsradio Political Editor Craig Dellimore reports Ald. Latasha Thomas (17th) and Finance Committee Chairman Edward Burke (14th) grew concerned about the ability to prosecute people who use cell phones or small cameras to take pictures from under women's skirts without their knowledge or consent, after the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled such photos were legal.
Thomas said technology makes such invasions of privacy much easier.
"I still have an expectation that they're not looking through my clothes, or under my clothes," she said. "We didn't know, but Massachusetts really brought it out for us, and so now in Chicago, Chairman Burke and I are making sure that we get this right," she said.
In the Massachusetts case, the court ruled a man who took "upskirt" photos of women riding the subway was not illegal, because the women were not nude or partially nude at the time. After that ruling, Massachusetts lawmakers rushed to close any loopholes in the state's "upskirt" law, and make the taking of such pictures a misdemeanor, punishable by jail time and fines.
The proposal from Thomas and Burke would impose a fine of up to $500 for anyone who photographs, videotapes, or makes a live transmission of another person "under or through the clothing worn by that other person for the purpose of viewing the body of or the undergarments worn by that person without that person's consent."