ARLINGTON — A teacher at Arlington Christian School is accused of shooting hundreds of videos of female staff members and students on campus without their permission.
Many of the videos were short cellphone clips that zoomed in on breasts, buttocks and crotches of unsuspecting women and girls, according to reports filed in court by Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies.
Three videos in particular, taken of a 17-year-old student, allegedly violated state voyeurism laws.
In addition to being the lead high school teacher, Stephen Clark Brown, 61, was a coach and pastor at the school.
Arlington Christian School operates preschool, elementary, middle and high school classes.
A student had reportedly found a USB drive containing the video in the school’s parking lot Oct. 24. After reviewing the files, the thumb drive was handed over to school authorities, who contacted the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.
Many of the videos didn’t meet the level of a crime, court papers say. However, they did reveal “a repeated pattern and practice of Brown secretly recording videos of women” on campus.
The three videos depicted the student sitting in a classroom, wearing a mid-thigh skirt and black nylons, court papers say.
The person filming appears to be trying to get a view up the student’s skirt, detectives wrote. With each progressive video, the suspect moves closer to the victim, from about 12 feet to 2 feet. The angle of the camera gets lower and lower.
In the last video, the phone is apparently being held under a desk, documents say.
“There is no reaction from (the victim), indicating she has no knowledge the camera is pointed in a direction up her skirt,” the report states.
Many of the cellphone clips reportedly showed partial or full views of Brown’s face as he was filming. He was booked into the Snohomish County Jail for investigation of felony voyeurism. Detectives were reviewing hundreds of other videos to identify any additional victims or witnesses.
Brown was initially put on paid administrative leave pending further information. On Wednesday, a school official said steps are being taken to terminate his employment.
A letter signed by the school’s administrator stated that additional protective measures are being coordinated with parents.
Zachariah Bryan: 425-339-3431; zbryan@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @zachariahtb.
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