WEST BOISE, Idaho — The home security video from the Nancy Guthrie case is putting the spotlight on doorbell cameras.
They can help solve a crime, but are neighbors allowed to set up systems that peer into someone else's home?
WATCH: Doorbell cameras spark privacy concerns in local apartment complexes
Idaho News 6 Senior Reporter Roland Beres spoke to one of the tens of thousands of apartment dwellers in the Treasure Valley, who says their neighbor's doorbell camera is invading her privacy.
Alison Hurst has lived in her West Boise apartment for about a year, and her neighbor's doorbell camera is positioned directly across from her front door.
"Every time I open the door, every time I start the car in the morning, I leave the apartment in my bathrobe, I feel constantly watched," said Hurst.
You see, the cameras are motion-activated, and because of its close proximity, Hurst is likely being recorded multiple times a day. She also expressed concern that the camera has the ability to see inside her apartment windows.
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"I'm sure that they can see inside our home, considering how close the camera is to our door and to our window," added Hurst. "I leave blinds open for my plants, but that's my bedroom window, and it makes me wonder if the camera can see inside my bedroom window."
On the main floor, Hurst has taken to closing her blinds to protect her privacy.
And as frustrating as that might sound, Attorney David Leroy says the legality of the doorbell camera all comes down to the intent of the neighbor.
"If the purpose of setting up that camera across the street is security and if that's generally the way it's used, then that's defensible and lawful," said Leroy, "If, on the other hand, it is set up specifically to intrude into a private area of a neighbor's house, that is arguably illegal."
The problem is— it's hard to know intent until something bad happens. That, and there is no state regulation regarding security cameras in apartment complexes.
Some complexes may set down rules restricting them, but many, like Hurst's, do not.
"They say they don't have any rules and not much they can do," lamented Hurst.
So short of filing a privacy complaint and going to court, Hurst will just have to grin and bear it.
Or better yet— smile— she's on candid camera.
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