Top Court dismisses appeal by Tokyo man who aimed camera at woman's body

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Top Court dismisses appeal by Tokyo man who aimed camera at woman's body

The Supreme Court's first bench dismissed an appeal on December 5 by a 52-year-old man found guilty of breaking a Tokyo obscenity bylaw for aiming his camera at a woman s lower body in public.

The decision of the top court resulted in an eight-month prison sentence, which was confirmed by the appellate court.

The man took pictures of a woman from behind at an anime shop in Tokyo in May 2020, according to the ruling.

He held a small camera and aimed it up close at her lower body, positioning it at the same level as the hem of the skirt she was wearing.

Tokyo has an ordinance that bans voyeurism with cameras, which prohibits photographing or filming a person's underwear or a body part covered by their clothing.

It also bans any obscene act that humiliates a person or disturbs them.

Prosecutors argued that the man's action met the definition of an obscene act.

The Tokyo District Court s Tachikawa Branch found the man innocent at the first trial because his video footage does not place an emphasis on the woman's buttocks and thighs. The man was found guilty of a second trial at the Tokyo High Court. It said it should be taken into account whether the man's actions had disturbed the victim based on his intent and the positional relationship of the camera to her body.

In upholding the decision, the Supreme Court acknowledged that the man s act of focusing the camera on her body had significantly sounded and disturbed her and was an indecent and lewd action that runs counter to sexual morals.