Guy is a class A creeper. Nothing about some of those pictures has anything to do with the public space he's in, it's like ass shots and women's legs lol and that's the shit he showed the reporter, who knows what he may have deleted.
I bet all of us would be pissed if we saw this guy taking pics like that of our girlfriend or wife. Not saying it's illegal or the other guy should have beat the shit out of him but it doesn't seem like he's just some innocent photographer who got caught up in a misunderstanding.
Imagine standing with your girl and captain sketchbag is snapping away pics of her ass, only to recite that it's his hobby and not illegal when she asks him to stop. Sure, a secure woman calls him out, flips him off, and just goes about her day but I wouldn't be a happy camper if I saw that BS.