Is it illegal to take a picture of someone sitting down?

No, your teacher is an ass.

Tell your parents or talk to another teacher or your principal. This is not right and if you are telling the truth and have nothing to hide this teacher is a nut case. Expose their threats to the proper authorities, they deserve to be reprimanded.

Why are you both taking pictures of this guy? And what do you mean ‘as a prank’. Someone has been concerned enough about it to bring it to a teacher’s attention.

Flutherother the girl kept saying I liked him so I joked and said she liked him too and sent her a picture. No one in the whole school has any idea how she even found out. We all got pretty creeped out..

My first thought was that maybe you two took the pictures of him for bullying purposes, but if what you just said is true, your teacher is definitely overreacting, and no, I’m pretty sure it’s legal because you took pictures of him in public places.

That said, maybe you guys weren’t as stealthy as you thought. He may have been aware that you guys were taking his picture, and if it made him really uncomfortable, maybe he’s the one who told the teacher?

I asked him about it in math class and he was like…. Uh what are you talking about you took a picture of me?

Oh I also forgot to add she said what we were doing is harassment apparently?? By taking 2 pictures yup harassment.

Taking pic can’t be illegal but yes using it pic for anything is illegal.

Okay, well, there are really only two options. The first being what I already said, which is that he told the teacher (and is just acting like he doesn’t know, though I find it doubtful), or the other is that your friend blabbed to someone else, who then blabbed to someone else – until it got to your teacher (or the other person went straight to the teacher themselves).

Either way, your teacher is overreacting. I suggest that you apologize to the guy, even though your behavior seems pretty harmless. That way if your teacher decides to needlessly freak out more, the guy will at least be informed of what’s going on and be able to tell people that he got an apology from you – which would prevent your teacher from trying to get you into even more trouble, if that is, for some reason, her desire. Cover your own butt here and just tell him that you’re sorry if it bothered him, but that you really didn’t mean anything by it.

We didn’t tell anyone about that picture. Second afterwards people heard of us getting in trouble (we’re popular) and they were wondering who told too. I was talking with this girl who was next to me in class and I was like ughh this sucks why do things have to be this way. Different teacher btw. She heard me and thought I said well you know what’s she’s like. She gave me this long speech how she thought it was disturbing that I said that… What I mean is she thought I was inferring the teacher is rude but I never even said that. I even asked the girl shortly afterwards if I said that and she said no. I forgot to mention she put this in the record book to make sure we won’t take pictures again. She then said we’ll have you two talk to the police if it happens again. Who in their right mind would actually send more pics of the same boy after getting in huge trouble

Only other thing I can think of is that if you two were talking about it at school, someone overheard you. Otherwise, I don’t really even want to imagine how else your teacher could have known.

Her reaction was stupid and uncalled for, regardless. I agree with @Coloma, though. I think that you should definitely talk to your parents about it, because if everything you’re saying is truthful, that teacher is behaving in a completely ridiculous manner.

Ok, so, My opinion, by what I can read you did inform the guy, ok after you took the pictures, but he knows now, and isn’t laying any complaints about it to anyone, didn’t even know you took it but isn’t conserned that you did. So I would really say the teacher is OVER REACTING on this one. It definitely isn’t a crime to take a photo but you do need to take into consideration that you need the person in the photo’s consent if you post it anywhere. But now he already knows about it and is ok with it.

I agree with @DrasticDreamer and @Coloma just inform your parents of what happened, from beginning to end so they know as well. And maybe talk to the guy again and tell him as well. That way you cover your own bum so to speak in case the teacher says or does anything else.

If you both are taking photos if the same guy it can be misconstrued as stalking. It isn’t illegal to take a photo of someone in a public place, but you are too young to be figuring out what for sure is a public place. Open to the public typically means it is classified as public for some definitions, but it also is a private business most likely. It isn’t like he was out on a public street or in a park.

Still, taking multiple photos of someone on separate occasion is odd, and if someone gets nervous about it they might call the cops. This guy might not care, but another might. Your teacher is probably trying to get you to stop before you get yourself in trouble.

I agree with people above who are saying tell your parents.

Tell your parents. If all you did was what you said you did, hopefully your parents will advocate for you and get the teacher to back off. The teacher needs to know her threats are baseless (if you are telling the story accurately).

I wouldn’t have thought so, but then I know squat about this.

I’ve seen the guy at church countless other times too, I could’ve taken countless other pictures but I didn’t. The girl only took that picture because I sent her one 2–3 months ago and she wanted revenge. Obviously she didn’t stalk him to the bakery shop it was just a coincidence or there wouldn’t be such a huge time gap between the photos.

I think schools are being ultra-cautious about incidents that may seem like stalking or bullying. Although what you did was presumably not illegal, it skirted the boundaries of being invasive. I would just stop the behavior at this point and let it go.

Something seems odd about taking pictures of people “as a prank” and “for revenge”. My guess is maybe he’s not the most attractive person and you’re being mean spirited.

I think the teacher is over-reacting but I bet it just comes from being frustrated as hell. Middl school girls are experts at being passive-aggressively mean, doing things that aren’t technically against any rules but totally humiliate and embarrass someone and feigning complete innocence and wonder when students/teachers get upset.

I’ve been a teacher in a middle school and I’ve been there. It’s pretty darned obvious that the girls were bullying and being mean little jerks but I couldn’t do anything because there wasn’t a specific rule against what they were doing.

Go on and pretend like you had no rude intentions to the boy. Your language of “as a prank” and “for revenge” and you pulling an innocent face because taking pictures isn’t technically illegal speaks for itself. Yes the teacher went too far, but he’s probably fed up with you girls. I’m also guessing this isn’t the first set of little “pranks” and “revenge” stunts you’ve pulled using other students as dupes to get your jollies.

I knew nasty little girls who pulled crap like you’re describing when I was your age. I saw them again when I was a teacher and taught girls your age. I didn’t like it any better the second time.

I very much doubt this activity was illegal, and your school was wrong to represent it as such.
That said, you guys need to find better ways to occupy your time.

Ok I will honestly admit that he wasn’t that attractive. But we haven’t been pulling multiple pranks just for laughs. We pull pranks on each other as friends though but these take place at our houses and not at school. We’re not dumb enough to just go around humiliating everyone we see

Well, now you’ve learned a further limitation. Live with it.

Its a cruel thing to do. How would you like it if your pic was passed around as a gross person to have a crush on? Would you like to have people take you pictures outside of school when you’re minding your own business?

No we just sent the pics personally. Honestly we gave the pics a quick look and then deleted them. That’s why were confused about how the teacher found out. I even apologized to him without the teachers asking me too so I don’t really feel guilty about the experience.

@ShadowDimension: This whole experience should make you look at yourself and your behavior. Examine your motives (you don’t have to explain to us what you discover). Hopefully you realize where you were wrong and you learn a lesson from it.

Of course I know I was wrong! I literally said we definitely would not be taking photos of this guy again! Or anyone else besides our friend for this matter.

@ShadowDimension: I wrote that because you just wrote “I even apologized to him without the teachers asking me too so I don’t really feel guilty about the experience.” That makes it sound like you were not reflective about your actions.

No, but your teacher is you are being an ass.

Ah, why am I not surprised that my first reaction of bullying is closer to the truth than anything else? I ended up thinking that you two took the pictures because you actually had a crush on him, but it turns out you took the pictures to make fun of him?

I also hope that you learn something from this. Making fun of someone because they aren’t as pretty as you think they should be is a disgusting personality trait to have.

Mean girls.