A police sergeant in Jackson, Wyoming, caught a Texas man last month taking photos of the private parts of a 7- or 8-year-old girl while he was standing behind her in line for rides, court documents say.
William Ewan Brennan IV, 41, is now accused of voyeurism, a crime punishable by up to ten years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
His case was brought before Teton County District Court on Wednesday, where a felony charge was filed, about a week after Brennan posted $25,000 bail, his court filing said.
The judge ordered Brennan to stay away from children while in custody.
This witness was there
Jackson Police Officer Paul Jacobson was observing the fair on foot the evening of July 26. It was about 10:34 p.m. when a man approached Jacobson and said he saw another man taking photos of a girl who looked about 7 or 8 years old, an affidavit in the case states.
The witness told Jacobson that he was waiting in line for a ride at the fair when he noticed the other man – later identified as Brennan – standing behind the young girl, apparently taking photos of her intimate lower body with his phone.
She was wearing loose white shorts that reached about mid-thigh and a black tank top, the document says.
Another witness, a woman, said she noticed the flash from Brennan’s phone.
The male witness boarded the same ride as Brennan and the girl. Brennan chose a seat on the ride right next to the little girl, the witness’ interview document states.
At that point, the witness took his own photo of Brennan and later showed it to Jacobson so he could find the man, the affidavit states.
Jacobson noted in the affidavit that the witness’ photo of Brennan was a “live shot,” meaning a short video clip that ends with a still image. The video briefly shows the girl in the frame, the document says.
The hunt
Jacobson relayed his findings to Sergeant Kyle Foster and another officer, who began searching the fairgrounds for Brennan.
They quickly found him standing behind the same little girl in line for another ride, the affidavit states.
Foster stood behind Brennan and watched him. Brennan held his phone with the camera activated to his chest and pointed it at the girl’s butt, the document says.
Foster reportedly approached Brennan and asked him what he wanted to photograph.
The affidavit states that Brennan had his cell phone in his pocket. Jacobson’s allegations about the photos he allegedly took earlier were ridiculous and he did not want to speak to the sergeant, the document says.
The affidavit states that Brennan was then handcuffed and taken to the parked police cars, where he was read his Miranda rights. It does not say which officer handcuffed him or read him his Miranda rights.
Brennan asked if he had to go to jail.
Jacobson said this was possible because he was likely accused of voyeurism, the document says.
“This is a crime?” Brennan asked, shocked, according to the affidavit.
The document states that Brennan refused to allow officers to search his phone.
Cowboy State Daily was unable to reach Brennan at publication time.
No idea what brought him here
Jackson Police Sergeant Jeremy Traphagan said he did not know exactly what brought the Texas man to Jackson, but it was normal for people from out of state to be in the tourist-heavy city.
“Especially in the summer, there are so many people coming and going. We have such a high influx of visitors,” Traphagan said. “Sometimes they hang out here, sometimes they think… ‘It’s so beautiful, I can do it.'”
And sometimes they realize that life in the community is expensive and change their minds, he added.
Traphagan said there is likely a search warrant for the relevant contents of Brennan’s phone and that the department seized the phone pending the issuance of a warrant.
The Teton County District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on whether an arrest warrant exists or what status it is being sought.
Claire McFarland can be reached at [email protected].
