A former Florida high school employee pleaded guilty to video voyeurism charges on Jan. 10. He had been the athletic director at the school for 11 years and served as the coach of the girls’ lacrosse team for three years.
According to prosecutors, the 51-year-old man had put a disguised camera in a digital alarm clock. This camera took images and video of a 17-year-old student without clothing. Authorities said that the camera contained an SD memory card with 149 video files and 35 photographs of the girl.
The man pleaded guilty to three felony third-degree charges, which were punishable by up to 15 years in jail. However, he was sentenced to just 18 months in a Florida state prison. Additionally, he will be required to serve eight years of probation as a sex offender. This means that he is not allowed to have any contact with individuals under the age of 18 years old. He also will not be allowed to possess electronic devices or pornography. The final condition for his sentence included never being allowed to dress in a costume that could appeal to children or appear as Santa Claus.
People who have been accused of sex crimes face legal consequences in addition to a potential loss of their job. If they are convicted on those charges, the punishments could include being required to register as a sex offender, which prevents them from working in many different types of jobs or living in certain areas. A criminal law attorney may provide a defense to voyeurism or other sex charges in order to protect a client’s rights, especially if the evidence was illegally obtained.
Source: Reading Eagle, “Former Florida school athletic director gets 18 months for video voyeurism”, Marc Freeman, Jan. 10, 2018
