She videotaped my children

[rickscitygirl]

What is the name of your state? Kentucky
My mother in law who is 73 babysat my girls for 2 days while I was working overtime. During 1 of these days she patted my 4yr old on the bottom and said "get outta my chair" which was no big deal, more of a joke than anything, well my 4yr old said "She spanked me because I was in her chair" When the mother in law heard this the NEXT day she watched them she had video cameras in all of her rooms to video everything she also had tape recorders to tape all conversations. She said she wasnt going to let a 4yr old ruin her "life" by telling these awful lies on her. She even video taped them in the bathroom peeing! Can she do that? Im furious! Please help me! I dont want to take her to court but she says all the time I can video people in my bathroom its my house and I saw someone on "JUDGE JUDY" do this!!! Please inform me on what is right and wrong...PS we moved 3 hrs away from her!
Thanks!

 

[amc822]

Get a new babysitter and don't use her bathroom.

 

[rickscitygirl]

I think that falls into the listing of NO **** SHERLOCK!!!! We have moved 3 hrs from this woman but if you would read I was asking CAN SHE DO THIS LEGALLY!?!??! People like you is why I dont post unless there is no other option

 

[stephenk]

as long as everyone who is in her house is aware that taping is going on, she can do it.

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

"as long as everyone who is in her house is aware that taping is going on, she can do it."


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My response:

I agree in the result, but must disagree with the reasoning of my good friend, and brethren, Stephen.

Yes, she "can do it" because it's her house, and "warning signs" are not required; e.g., "All who enter are video and audio recorded."

The question really comes down to an "expectation of privacy" and whether a "visitor" has such an "expectation" when in someone else's home. As a visitor, I have no right to tell someone how to run their household and, if by chance, a homeowner has their entire house "wired" for video and/or audio recordings, I cannot "expect" my visit to be "private" despite the fact that I may want, or feel, that my visit is, or should be, private.

Imagine how President Nixon would have fought the U.S. Supreme court, and his arguments in favor of "privacy" if the law was such that his tape recordings were private; i.e., that he held an "expectation of privacy" or those that he recorded had an "expectation of privacy" - - all the participants would have had to do was "declare" their conversations were made with an "expectation of privacy" and the Supreme Court could have ruled that such "privacy" was paramount to any information actually on the tapes. As we now know, there was no "expectation of privacy" and the unwitting participants could not argue such "privacy expectations", and they didn't, in front of the en banc Justices. Also, at the time, the White House and the Oval Office were, for all intents and purposes, Nixon's "home."

IAAL

 

[HomeGuru]

And we would have had some good footage of Bill and Monica too, not having sex.