In Idaho, video voyeurism is a felony and that’s why Mario Esquivel-Jimenez is in jail. Two different women caught him trying to take upskirt video footage of them at a Wal*Mart and they contacted the store manager. Then the Boise Police arrested him.
“It’s a felony,” said Lieutenant Steve Myers with Boise Police. “It’s a fairly new law on the books that was created to meet the needs of an ever-changing technology in society. So, we do use it quite a bit. It’s just one of those things that happen as times change. People take advantage of cell phones, to capture video that they should not be.”
Emphasis there was mine. It’s a good thing, if this is happening “quite a bit,” that it is illegal.
Remember, if you are the target or see someone else being the target of public harassment (and this goes for any type, not just gender-based), you can report it. Yes, there’s a chance your report won’t be taken seriously, but at least you’ve tried. And then, in a case like this, what if it is taken seriously? Because of you, hopefully the perpetrator will be deterred from harming anyone else.
