Court: 'Upskirt' Photos Are Legal

Women who ride the Boston subway will not be pleased to hear that the state's highest court says it's legal for someone to take "upskirt" photos of their privates. The state Supreme Judicial Court thinks it should be illegal, but the justices say current laws don't cover it, reports the Springfield Republican. The problem is that the Peeping Tom law in question was written to protect people who are nude or partially nude—someone in a changing room, for instance—not riders on the subway who are fully clothed, reports AP.

“A female passenger on a MBTA trolley who is wearing a skirt, dress, or the like covering [private] parts of her body is not a person who is ‘partially nude,’ no matter what is or is not underneath the skirt by way of underwear or other clothing,” says the court ruling. It's good news for Michael Robertson, who was arrested in a police sting in 2010. He didn't dispute that he took upskirt photos but argued that it's not a crime. The justices agreed today, but state lawmakers vowed afterward to quickly close the loophole, reports the Boston Globe. (More peeping tom stories.)