‘Upskirting’ Not A Crime, Georgia Appeals Court Rules

“It is regrettable that no law currently exists which criminalizes Gary’s reprehensible conduct,” Georgia Court of Appeals Judge Elizabeth Branch wrote of Brandon Lee Gary, a grocery store clerk who took videos up a woman’s skirt while she was shopping. But, the court determined in a 6-3 ruling, “The remedy for this problem … lies with the General Assembly, not this court.” The ruling overturns Gary’s 2013 felony conviction for following a woman around a grocery store and, multiple times, aiming his cell phone up her skirt to record her body without permission. “While what [he] did was objectionable,” Gary’s lawyer, public defender Michael Rivera, said, “there’s not a law on the books that outlaws this specific act.” Chuck Spahos, head of the Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia, said his group will draft legislation and look for a sponsor to carry the bill next year.