A National City man was sentenced June 7 to 150 days in jail for videotaping women in the restroom at a Walmart store in Kearny Mesa.
Richard Lawrence Shaw Jr., 52, was remanded to jail immediately after San Diego Superior Court Judge Cindy Davis placed him on terms of three years probation.
Shaw will have to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life. He was ordered to pay $1,659 in fines and court costs.
Shaw is “a video voyeur,” according to San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott in a press release.
“This predator invaded the privacy of women and children in a space where they felt protected and safe,” said Elliott. “Even worse, he captured his victims on video for his own enjoyment and dissemination.”
On Jan. 30, a female customer noticed a cell phone under the wall of her stall in the restroom and alerted store security. Shaw was found in the adjoining stall in the women’s bathroom and was arrested by San Diego Police.
Shaw’s projected release date is Aug. 18, according to the sheriff’s department. He received credits of eight days previously spent in jail, according to court records.
Shaw pleaded guilty on May 8 to nine misdemeanor charges of secretly filming a person in a private area such as a restroom or changing room without their consent. The nine counts reflect all nine victims he secretly recorded on his cell phone.
If he violates terms of his probation, he could be sentenced to four years in jail. Elliott said Shaw has a prior sex crime conviction in Maine.
“We will not tolerate these abuses in our community,” said Elliott. “Our office will prosecute sex crimes and similar abuses to the fullest extent of the law.”
The judge signed a protective order that bars any contact by Shaw with the victims. He is also barred from entering the Walmart store in Kearny Mesa. Shaw remains in the central jail.
