TACOMA — A jury has convicted Steve Powell of voyeurism charges that stemmed from an investigation into the 2009 disappearance of his daughter-in-law Susan Powell, a mother of two from Utah who remains missing.
Jurors returned their verdict Wednesday, finding Steve Powell guilty on all 14 counts.
Steve Powell simply looked off into a corner of the courtroom as the verdict was read. Anne Bremner, an attorney who represents Susan Powell’s family, smiled.
A sentencing hearing was scheduled for June 15.
Steve Powell faces a standard sentence of around four years, but the state has alleged aggravating factors that could result in a longer term.
Authorities brought the voyeurism charges last year after searching Steve Powell’s home during their investigation into Susan Powell’s disappearance.
Prosecutors claim images used as a basis for the charges were found on a disc in his bedroom. They’ve also said Susan Powell was the subject of many of Steve Powell’s photos, but those images were not part of the case. Instead, prosecutors focused on images of two young girls who lived next door to Steve Powell.
Susan Powell’s family believes Steve Powell has information on her disappearance, and authorities say he has been uncooperative in the investigation. Susan Powell’s husband, Josh, killed himself and the couple’s two young children earlier this year.
During closing arguments Tuesday, Pierce County prosecutor Grant Blinn methodically showed photos of the young girls to the jury while saying that Powell captured the images from his bedroom window.
“He was sitting there, lurking in the shadows, leering at the girls,” Blinn said.
Authorities say the files show the young girls in a bathroom as they bathed and used the toilet. The girls, identified in court only by their initials, were about 8 and 10 when the images were captured. They testified they had no idea someone had taken photos of them in the bathroom.
Defense attorneys had argued there were too many uncertainties in the evidence to convict. Lawyer Travis Currie repeatedly emphasized the standard of “reasonable doubt” during closing arguments, raising the prospect that others could have captured the images.
Jurors seemed to be grappling that issue during deliberations.
They asked a question early in the process Tuesday about whether the disc that contained the images was found in boxes containing only items belonging to Steve Powell. They then asked to view the disc to get clarity on two of the counts.
And on Wednesday, the jury asked a question about exhibits used by the prosecution, indicating jurors felt that images in one of the exhibits didn’t meet the reasonable doubt requirement.
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