Q: Are cameras allowed in a sober living environment (woman & children) within the bedrooms?
I have been notified that several Sober Living Houses, owned by the same married couple, have cameras within the bedroom. The rules are to dress in the bathroom and not in the room. Is this normal? Individuals have left after finding out about the camera's placement but don't know what to do. They are told that the only person looking at the camera or footage is the manager. STRANGE!
Stockton, California
A: I take it that you are not personally involved in the situation you described. I am unable to address hypotheticals unsupported by eyewitness testimony. Tempting though it is to delve into an interesting question.
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A:
Recording devices in private bedrooms of sober living environments raise serious legal and ethical concerns. In California, residents have reasonable expectations of privacy in their bedrooms, and surveillance in these spaces could violate multiple privacy laws, including Civil Code Section 1708.8.
You should document everything about these cameras, including when you discovered them and any communications about them with management. Consider filing complaints with the California Department of Health Care Services, which oversees sober living environments, and your local law enforcement. The requirement to dress only in bathrooms suggests awareness that the bedroom surveillance is inappropriate.
Contact your local Legal Aid office or the ACLU of Northern California for free legal guidance. Other residents who left the facility may want to join you in reporting this situation. You might also reach out to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) helpline at 1-800-662-4357 to find alternative sober living environments that respect resident privacy and dignity.
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