From Grits for Breakfast, a post about camera perspective bias. Research shows that the appearance of voluntariness of videotaped confessions changes based upon camera perspective. When the camera is on the defendant alone, the appearance of voluntariness is much strong than when the camera also shows the questioner’s body movements and facial expressions. When the view sees the full picture, it tends to alter the impression. Read Grits and put this tidbit away for your next video confession case. This one will come in real handy.
From the Turk at New York Personal Injury Law, a post about Progressive Insurance sending its investigators into a church support group, worming their way into the private therapy sessions, where they recorded people disclosing their deepest, darkest secrets in the hopes of catching two members who were suing for damages resulting from an auto accident. One of the most disgraceful examples I’ve seen in a long time.
For the non-lawyers here, all that Constitution mumbo-jumbo that us lawyers like to spout about applies to government action, not action by private parties. There may be some therapist-patient privilege issues when it comes to admissibility of evidence, but that’s really not the point. It’s how our privacy has been sacrificed on the alter of expediency. This is a really sick approach, which has gone way over the line of decency by anyone’s standards. As Eric notes, the CEO of Progressive has issued an apology for the incident, but does “we’re sorry for the inconvenience” cut it for those people who spoke about their most private personal problems in the belief that they were safe?
Robert Guest at I was the State blogs about Idaho Senator Larry Craig’s bathroom follies. He notes that the GOP obsession with gay marriage is misguided, as gay bathroom foot-tapping presents a greater threat to the sanctity of marriage. Has anyone questioned what the police officer was doing in that bathroom stall? Was he on Senator watch or foot-tapping watch? And how did he know what the indicia was for gay bathroom senatorial solicitation tricks? I would have thought the guy was thinking of a catchy tune in his head and tapping to the beat. But then, I’m not a cop.
From the Turk at New York Personal Injury Law, a post about Progressive Insurance sending its investigators into a church support group, worming their way into the private therapy sessions, where they recorded people disclosing their deepest, darkest secrets in the hopes of catching two members who were suing for damages resulting from an auto accident. One of the most disgraceful examples I’ve seen in a long time.
For the non-lawyers here, all that Constitution mumbo-jumbo that us lawyers like to spout about applies to government action, not action by private parties. There may be some therapist-patient privilege issues when it comes to admissibility of evidence, but that’s really not the point. It’s how our privacy has been sacrificed on the alter of expediency. This is a really sick approach, which has gone way over the line of decency by anyone’s standards. As Eric notes, the CEO of Progressive has issued an apology for the incident, but does “we’re sorry for the inconvenience” cut it for those people who spoke about their most private personal problems in the belief that they were safe?
Robert Guest at I was the State blogs about Idaho Senator Larry Craig’s bathroom follies. He notes that the GOP obsession with gay marriage is misguided, as gay bathroom foot-tapping presents a greater threat to the sanctity of marriage. Has anyone questioned what the police officer was doing in that bathroom stall? Was he on Senator watch or foot-tapping watch? And how did he know what the indicia was for gay bathroom senatorial solicitation tricks? I would have thought the guy was thinking of a catchy tune in his head and tapping to the beat. But then, I’m not a cop.
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In response to the Sen. Craig situation:
According to the arrest report (http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/docs/craig-arrest-doc/), the officer “…was working a plain-clothes detail involving lewd conduct in the main men’s public restroom…”
Did I read that right? The officer actually WAS assigned to “Senator watch or foot-tapping watch?” I wonder if, before being assigned to this detail, officers received training in “what the indicia was for gay bathroom senatorial solicitation tricks.”
I feel like airport police officers’ time might be better spent patrolling the airport perimeter for unauthorized persons, than patrolling the men’s bathroom for unauthorized senatorial sexual solicitation.
That said, if Senator Craig actually was trying to solicit sex in the bathroom, shame on him.
From Sen. Craig’s side, imagine how much differently the story would have gone had he said, “Yes, I’m gay. I thought I was being propositioned by a consenting gay man and I was interested in pursuing a consensual relationship with him. I had not yet reached the point of deciding that I wished to engage in homosexual sex, but was interested in letting him know that I too was gay and that his advances were appreciated, as I thought were mine. Had he not indicated any interest, I would not have pursued anything further and we would have both left that bathroom with nothing whatsoever having happened.”
Other than his outing, the story suddenly sounds almost innocent and appropriate. Hey, gay men go to the bathroom too. And meet people wherever they happen to meet people. And in a society that still has difficulty accepting differences in sexual orientation (ironically because of people like Sen. Craig), men who are not open about their preferences feel constrained to await indications from others that they too are interested by afraid to have it known by the world.
In fairness to the cop, he was no doubt assigned to this unpleasant (who wants to sit for a tour in the toilet stall?) duty. But the fact that cops need to be stationed in bathrooms to protect people against the evils of gay men meeting one another for sex should make one quiver. Do you wonder if Sen. Craig and the cop were tapping their toes in Morse code or just some secret beat? I apologize, I just can’t seem to stop making jokes about this one.
Scott,
I think you’ve described Craig’s best defense to the charges against him: “I’ve been picking up men in bathrooms for decades, and I had no reason to think that my communications with Sergeant Karsnia were unwelcome.” Unfortunately, it’s too little, too late.
I read on your blawg that you arrived at the same defense, although I avoided any mention of the term “weenie-wagglers,” and shall continue to do so.
You should. “Weenie wagglers” is an inappropriate expression for members of such a distinguished profession to use.
My Private Car Accident
It seems hard to believe an insurance company would stoop this low to get information on auto accidents….