Proposed bill would ban secret sexual videotaping

Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2000 | 10:16 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Assemblywoman Barbara Cegavske wants to stop a form of "video voyeurism."

In a recent case at a Las Vegas hotel, a man with a video camera pointed it under the skirts of females, while other other reports say cameras have been hidden in motel rooms, tanning salons and restrooms to film unsuspecting victims.

"I have not met anybody who is willing to give these criminals the freedom to do this," she said at a meeting Tuesday to discuss drafting a law to prohibit the surreptitious use of video cameras.

But there were words of caution for Cegavske.

"We don't want anything to impact our ability to control gaming," Steve DuCharme, chairman of the state Gaming Control Board, said as he cited the use of video surveillance in casinos to protect both the business and the customer from cheating.

Bob Fisher of the Nevada Broadcasters Association was worried the bill might go too far. He said television stations should not have to get the permission to film faces in the crowds at such events as football games.

"You should make sure the bill gives a comfort level to the television industry in Nevada," he said.

Ben Graham of the Clark County district attorney's office said this proposed bill will "need clear and concise standards" and contain language that is understandable to persons in "the ordinary day-to-day conduct."

When the incident of the man filming up the skirts of women happened at the Rio hotel-casino, there was confusion about what to do, Cegavske said. Security guards didn't know if they could confiscate the video camera or if the individual could be arrested. Her proposed law, she said, "is to protect the victim."

Cegavske assured the handful of officials present at the hearing she would not trample on the First Amendment rights of anybody and that she knows the importance of video surveillance, having been in the convenience store business in the past.

FBI Special Agent Roger Young said a federal law prohibits filming the private parts of a person under 18.

Cegavske favors an Arizona law that made it illegal for a person to photograph, videotape or record another without their consent in a restroom, bathroom or other location where the individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy.