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"Many legal professionals are shocked by the lawsuit, but a jury will ultimately decide whether or not Leon Walker does time." I don't see why this case is so

"Many legal professionals are shocked by the lawsuit, but a jury will ultimately decide whether or not Leon Walker does time." I don't see why this case is so outrageous or why they have to use a law that puts this in a gray area. The guy clearly stole his wife's password and broke into her account. This would be clear cut if it were a stranger who did it. Even if he believed the son to be in danger, there are ways of address the situation without compromising her email account.

cperciva 16y ago
This would be clear cut if it were a stranger who did it. But he's not a stranger. Married couples do all sorts of things which would be criminal if they were strangers. It seems to me that the key point here will be his state of mind when he found the password and logged in to his wife's account -- did he believe that his wife would object? (Obviously in hindsight we know that she did object, but you can't hang a man based on hindsight.) (Analogous situation: Man fondles woman's breast. If they're strangers, it's sexual assault. In a happily married couple, it's perfectly normal. If the wife is thinking of getting a divorce she might tell him to stop fondling her. But no court is ever going to demand that husbands receive written permission from their wives prior to each instance of breast-fondling, because there's a general recognition that people in relationships can make judgement calls about the boundaries of those relationships.)
- tptacek 16y ago
  He is a stranger. They're in divorce proceedings. World of difference.
ars 16y ago
Should I assume you never open postal mail addressed to your wife? A password does not in and of itself mean "don't look" because all online services require one anyway, so it doesn't work as a special "don't look" request. And especially when they share computers.
- tptacek 16y ago
  You can be prosecuted for opening your legally-separated spouse's postal mail; in fact, that's been a crime since (it appears) 1948. You also clearly have a legally enforceable expectation of privacy in your personal email account, so I don't know what your point is; just because Reddit also asks for a password doesn't mean that the Gmail login screen is optional.
  - ars 16y ago
    They were not separated. They were married and still living together. Having a password on your account does not give you a reasonable expectation of privacy from your spouse. Having a piece of paper that says "Please don't read my gmail" does. My point is that the password alone does not give you that expectation - you need an additional something.
    - tptacek 16y ago
      According to the WSJ, they were living together legally separated, which is a common situation. And I disagree with your broader point, as well.

cperciva 16y ago

This would be clear cut if it were a stranger who did it. But he's not a stranger. Married couples do all sorts of things which would be criminal if they were strangers. It seems to me that the key point here will be his state of mind when he found the password and logged in to his wife's account -- did he believe that his wife would object? (Obviously in hindsight we know that she did object, but you can't hang a man based on hindsight.) (Analogous situation: Man fondles woman's breast. If they're strangers, it's sexual assault. In a happily married couple, it's perfectly normal. If the wife is thinking of getting a divorce she might tell him to stop fondling her. But no court is ever going to demand that husbands receive written permission from their wives prior to each instance of breast-fondling, because there's a general recognition that people in relationships can make judgement calls about the boundaries of those relationships.)

tptacek 16y ago
He is a stranger. They're in divorce proceedings. World of difference.

ars 16y ago

Should I assume you never open postal mail addressed to your wife? A password does not in and of itself mean "don't look" because all online services require one anyway, so it doesn't work as a special "don't look" request. And especially when they share computers.

tptacek 16y ago
You can be prosecuted for opening your legally-separated spouse's postal mail; in fact, that's been a crime since (it appears) 1948. You also clearly have a legally enforceable expectation of privacy in your personal email account, so I don't know what your point is; just because Reddit also asks for a password doesn't mean that the Gmail login screen is optional.
- ars 16y ago
  They were not separated. They were married and still living together. Having a password on your account does not give you a reasonable expectation of privacy from your spouse. Having a piece of paper that says "Please don't read my gmail" does. My point is that the password alone does not give you that expectation - you need an additional something.
  - tptacek 16y ago
    According to the WSJ, they were living together legally separated, which is a common situation. And I disagree with your broader point, as well.