| | | postregister.com
Transgender woman arrested for voyeurism at Target
Posted: July 12, 2016 8:59 p.m.
POST REGISTER
A transgender Idaho Falls woman was arrested Tuesday on one count of felony voyeurism for a report that she took pictures of another woman changing clothes in a dressing room at Target in Ammon.
Shauna Patricia Smith, 43, is in custody in the Bonneville County Jail under the name Sean Smith, according to the jail’s active inmate roster. A Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office news release said the suspect also is known as Sean P. Smith.
Sheriff’s deputies responded Monday to the store after a woman reported that someone was taking pictures of her while she was inside a dressing room trying on clothes, the release said. The victim noticed the subject reaching over the wall with a cellphone taking pictures. The victim confronted the suspect who then fled the store on foot, the release said.
Sheriff’s Office Spokesman Sgt. Bryan Lovell said he didn’t know whether the reported victim was wearing underwear when she was photographed.
Detectives reviewed witness information and security footage from Target that led them to come in contact with Smith, the release said. After interviewing Smith she was taken into custody by detectives and booked into the jail.
Detectives are investigating to determine if any more victims exist relating to this incident, the release said.
The charge is punishable by up to five years in prison.
Target made headlines in April when it released a public statement saying “supports the federal Equality Act, which provides protections to LGBT individuals, and opposes action that enables discrimination.”
Its statement went on to say “we welcome transgender team members and guests to use the restroom or fitting room facility that corresponds with their gender identity.”
The announcement drew protests throughout the country and the American Family Association, a conservative Christian activist group, started a petition drive to get those who disagreed with the store’s policy to pledge to boycott the store.
The Association reported in May that it had delivered petitions with more than a million signatures in support of the boycott. |
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