In the movie she rents the adjacent motel room drills a hole in the wall and sticks a hidden camera through the wall to make an illicit tape without the knowledge or consent of either party. My question for anyone in the know is is that legal? If it is, what is to stop any creepy voyuer from doing that to just anyone?
shareWhether it's legal or not is one thing. But those sorts of tactics have been used forever. When you present someone a photos, tapes or videotapes of their wrong-doing in a much bigger matter (lying to your spouse, cheating, denying you're doing it), the legalities of how it was ascertained go out the window. But when it comes to a voyeur/stalker filming their victim, that's the bigger, more overriding issue.
shareEither something is a crime or it's not. Wiretaping, for example, is Definitely illegal regardless of whether you record a cheating wife talking to her boyfriend or whether all you get is someone talking about a football game. I asked at least 2 different real private investigators about this and was informed that it is a felony in my state. They further explained that in most of these kinds of investigations they typically record a couple going into a motel room and coming out some time later. Because a divorce is a civil action and not a criminal trial, the proof requirement is lower. The standard in civil cases is by "a preponderance of the evidence", not "beyond a reasonable doubt" Besides every state now has no fault divorce so you don't need to prove adultery. In 2010, New York became the very last state to adopt no fault divorce.
shareI'm a freelance writer, and in my state (Montana) I can't record anyone without them knowing it. They could come back and press charges on me if they found out after the fact, so I have to inform everyone I record for interviews and get their okay. It's different in every state (I've looked). I believe it's legal in NJ, where I've also lived. But --- admissable in court? I think that depends on the judge, if it was done legally to begin with.
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