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Mass. SJC: Subway 'upskirt' photos not illegal

BOSTON (MyFoxBoston.com/AP) - The highest court in Massachusetts has determined that a man who took cell phone photos up the skirts of women riding the Boston subway did not violate state law because the women were not "nude or partially nude."

The Supreme Judicial Court on Wednesday dismissed charges against Michael Robertson who was arrested in August 2010 by transit police, who set up a sting after getting reports that he was using his cell phone to take photos and video up female rider's skirts and dresses.

The SJC decision says a woman on the MBTA "wearing a skirt, dress, or the like covering these parts of her body is not a person who is 'partially nude.'"

Robertson's lawyer argued before the state SJC that women "cannot expect privacy" in a subway.

"If a clothed person reveals a body part whether it was intentional or unintentional, he or she cannot expect privacy," Attorney Michelle Menken said.

Suffolk District Attorney Dan Conley said, "His conduct was repulsive, and you know nothing would please me more than to prosecute him and hold him accountable."

House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo released the following statement Wednesday: "The ruling of the Supreme Judicial Court is contrary to the spirit of the current law. The House will begin work on updating our statutes to conform with today's technology immediately."

The SJC says while such actions should be illegal, the way state law is written they are not.