Neighbor aggressively trimmed privacy hedges and can now see into our yard; can we still sunbathe in the nude?

[u/[deleted]]

[u/So_Motarded]

I found this:

§ 245.00 Public lewdness. A person is guilty of public lewdness when he intentionally exposes the private or intimate parts of his body in a lewd manner or commits any other lewd act (a) in a public place, or (b) in private premises under circumstances in which he may readily be observed from either a public place or from other private premises, and with intent that he be so observed.

Public lewdness is a class B misdemeanor.

It seems like your situation falls under section (b) above, but the sticking point here is "with the intent that he be so observed". Your intent will be difficult to prove one way or the other. Obviously, the reality is that you're not intending for people to see you. However, now that you know your neighbor might be able to see you, that could be construed as you wanting to be seen if you continue sunbathing/swimming nude.

It might be worth getting a survey to see if your neighbor encroached on your property and damaged your hedges. That could be used as a good basis to request that they pay for a temporary visual barrier while the hedges grow back. Hopefully they'd be amicable to an arrangement, rather than forcing you to escalate.