There are a lot of reasons I find the state as a whole at least marginally upsetting at times, sex-toy ban, no alcohol sales before noon on Sundays, the fact that churches get to disrupt traffic patterns so people can get in and out of the parking lot more easily… Anyway, a lot to dislike, but I really think charging this guy with a felony is pretty beyond the pale.
The first-year speech and drama teacher planned to turn himself in to Grand Prairie police this week on charges of improper visual recording, which carries up to two years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Ware shot about two hours of videotape at an all-day tournament Saturday but drew suspicion from a coach, Grand Prairie Sgt. John Brimmer said. A police officer reviewed Ware’s tape.
“This was more than accidental footage of the genital areas,” Brimmer said. “It appeared to be a purposeful act of zooming in.”
Ware was charged under a 2001 law meant to protect people from ultra-small cameras that can be used to peek into dressing rooms or up women’s skirts. Under the law, filming a person without consent for sexual arousal is a felony.
Now, I’ll be the first person to tell you this guy’s a bit of a creep, and that’s a creepy thing to do, but is it really in the same class as pedophilia? The Texas Penal code was modified to include this sort of behavior in 2001, based on an episode of fluff “news” program 20/20. Furthermore, Ware, if convicted, will have to register as a sex offender. And, for what? Finding post-pubescent teenagers attractive and filming them. This is the sort of harmless-but-creepy behavior that really deserves a pass, but given the once-and-future nature of these kinds of scares don’t expect Ware to get a lot of sympathy, or for these laws to be repealed any time soon.
