First Amendment

'Up-skirt' photos aren't banned by Peeping Tom law, lawyer argues

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A lawyer for a Massachusetts man accused of taking “up-skirt” photos on the Boston subway argued on Monday that a Peeping Tom law doesn’t ban her client’s actions.

Lawyer Michelle Menkin told the state’s top court that the law only applies to settings where there is an expectation of privacy and the photo subject is nude or partially nude, report the Boston Daily and the Eagle-Tribune.

Construing the statute to ban photos of clothed people in public places would potentially punish activities protected by the First Amendment, Menkin argued in her court brief.

Menkin represents Michael Robertson, 31, of Andover, who was arrested in August 2010 in a police operation in which an undercover officer was used as a decoy.

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