According to Idaho Falls CBS station KIDK3, a transgender woman has been arrested for allegedly taking pictures of another woman changing her clothes in a Target dressing room. Shauna Patricia Smith was arrested on one felony count of voyeurism following the incident.
A spokesperson from the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office told the news station that an adult female was trying on clothing in the dressing room when she noticed someone holding a cellphone reach over the wall into her space and start taking pictures. When the woman confronted Smith about it, she ran out of the store.
Police were able to find Smith using security footage provided by the store.
Conservatives have tried to portray transgender people as bathroom predators and have loudly protested Target’s decision to allow transgender customers and staff to use the facilities that correspond with their gender identity, saying the policy would allow “men dressed as women” and cause a safety danger to cisgender women.
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Laws already exist, however, to protect women from voyeurism and sexual abuse. The laws are applicable no matter the gender orientation of the suspect and public accommodations laws that include gender identity cannot be used as an excuse to break the law. If the allegations against Smith are true, she will be punished for the crime just like anyone else would be.
Idaho does not have public accommodations protections for LGBT people.
