PHOENIX - Security cameras are everywhere these days. But where do we draw the line between security and personal privacy?
A Phoenix-area woman ran into that question when she discovered her neighbor's security cameras were pointing into her home.
It became a legal battle with police -- even superior court -- that she lost in court, because it's perfectly legal to record someone in their bedroom as long as you do it from a public point of view and are not trespassing on private property.
"I go out there. The camera is right in my face again. It's just constant," said Christina Patrick, a north Phoenix mother of three.
Patrick said they have walked on egg shells for the last month. In early January, her neighbor put up a security camera on his patio.
Patrick alleges the camera is constantly pointed at her door, her patio and her windows if it's not tracking their moves as they walk out of their unit and around the condominium complex.
The two sides of this story share a history of tense interactions.
The neighbor in question, Ronald Lucas, said he's had a lot trouble with Patrick and her family since he moved in across from their unit.
Lucas said he put the camera on his patio to keep an eye on his scooter in the parking lot.
The whole issue has been taken as far as superior court. A judge at one point ordered Lucas to not point his cameras at Patrick or her family.
But the battle of security versus privacy ended with the judge finding there was no problem.
"You don't expect it," said Patrick. "And when it happens, you feel like you have a safety net with law enforcement and the court system."
But her neighbor's cameras are not against the law.
According to a Phoenix Police Department spokesperson, if it is in public view, it is fair game to take pictures or video.
It would only be illegal if you have an expectation of privacy, like in your bathroom.
Even your bedroom isn't safe if someone can see in from the street. Your expectation of privacy is only supported by covering windows with curtains or blinds.
So can your neighbors watch and record you? It may not make you very comfortable, but the answer is yes, and they can do so very closely.