Premise: The Star Spangled Banner, A World Without Love and Peeping Tom are linked in history. Last week I discussed “hey ya’ll, watch this” and the ability, or inability, to video record such an event. I concluded with a comment about Georgia’s Peeping Tom’s statute, which is found in O.C.G.A. § 16-11-61. “Peeping Toms - (a) It shall be unlawful for any person to be a peeping Tom on or about the premises of another or to go about or upon the premises of another for the purpose of becoming a peeping Tom. (b) As used in this Code section, the term peeping Tom means a person who peeps through windows or doors, or other like places, on or about the premises of another for the purpose of spying upon or invading the privacy of the persons spied upon and the doing of any other acts of a similar nature which invade the privacy of such persons.” Pretty straightforward, I think. We all know what a Peeping Tom is, right, but where did that saying come from? It comes from the story, or legend, of Lady Godiva. Lady Godiva rode through Coventry, England, in 1057, or thereabouts, on her horse, in a unclothed manner, that is, naked. If you are like me, all you know about Lady Godiva came from that great Peter & Gordon #1 song of the same name. Turns out, Lady G was a magnanimous sort and desired to rid the town of her husband’s oppressive taxation. He refused to relent on the taxes (sounds familiar, no?) and she persisted, to no avail. Finally, he said he would relent if she would ride naked through town, clothed only in her long hair. She took him at this word and decreed that everyone stay inside, with their windows drawn, as she rode through. Alas, the town tailor, Tom, drilled a hole in the shutter to get a look. He was struck blind at the sight of Lady G in her birthday suit. The statues depicting her appearance indicate she was a beauty, but I don’t know about blindingly beautiful. Her husband admitted he had been bested, relented and abolished his onerous taxes. No politicians I know would keep that promise and none of their wives would do what Lady G did. She was a unique one. Back to Georgia and our voyeurism statute. The Lady G example isn’t a good one because she was clearly in a public place. Ol’ Tom has no duty to divert his gaze from her long blonde hair, although his wife might disagree. But in a private place, yes, it is illegal to surveil someone and take a look, clothed or not. We usually think of someone being in a state of undress, but that is not required for a peeper to be convicted. All that is required is the attempt, which is not called “attempted peeping tom” but “peeping tom.” Now, about the Star Spangled Banner link. Paul McCartney dated Jane Asher when he was a young Beatle. Her brother was Peter Asher, an aspiring young musician. Paul gave Peter the song “A World Without Love”, which Peter & Gordon recorded and it went to Number One. Peter Asher later became a representative of Apple Records the Beatle’s record company, and he signed James Taylor to Apple as their first male artist. James Taylor has had a hugely successful career, but he botched the Star Spangled Banner last week during the World Series. And that makes Peeping Tom relevant to today’s news. Kelly Burke, former district attorney and magistrate judge, is engaged in private practice. He focuses on personal injury cases and corporate litigation. These articles are not designed to give legal advice, but are designed to inform the public about how the law affects their daily lives. Contact Kelly at kelly@burkelasseterllc to comment on this article or suggest articles about the law that youd like to see.
Posted on: Fri, 08 Nov 2013 19:54:53 +0000
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