Couple ordered to adjust CCTV cameras to protect neighbour’s privacy

A CAMPS Bay couple will have to comply with a previous court order that compels them to reposition their 24-hour CCTV cameras, which currently invade the privacy of their neighbour.

- CHEVON BOOYSEN

In handing down judgment this week, Judge Melanie Holderness said the couple’s (appellants’) concerns regarding security, whether real or perceived, “cannot trump the respondent’s fundamental and constitutionally protected right to privacy”.

Judge Holderness said the cameras, which have a clear line of sight into the neighbour's pool and entertainment area, patio/courtyard, and one of his bedrooms, constitute a clear violation of the respondent’s inner sanctum.

All parties to the litigation reside in Bakoven — an exclusive, secluded and built-up residential suburb on Cape Town’s Atlantic Seaboard, nestled between the more bustling suburbs of Camps Bay and Llandudno.

According to court papers: “These neighbours have been at war with each other for almost two decades. Their protracted and litigious history dates back to 2008, when the respondent redeveloped his property.”