Ruling May Spark Rewrite Of Sexual Exploitation Law

Washington’s law barring videotaping of minors for sexual exploitation doesn’t necessarily apply if the child is unaware of the taping, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday in a decision likely to ignite new legislative energy to rewrite the law.

In a 6-3 decision, the high court reversed the Pierce County Superior Court conviction of Gary Powell Chester on a charge of sexual exploitation of a minor. Chester had been convicted after secretly videotaping his 14-year-old stepdaughter in her bedroom after she had emerged from the shower on Jan. 12, 1994.

In another decision released Thursday, the high court unanimously upheld the Thurston County Superior Court conviction of Gary K. Myers, who videotaped his 7-year-old daughter naked in the bathtub despite her protests that he stop.

In the Chester case, the videotape showed the girl wrapped in a towel, unclothed and partially clothed. The video camera was hidden under the girl’s bed in a pile of clothing. She was unaware that she was being taped, the court noted.

Chester said he taped the girl as a joke and did not do it out of sexual intent.

The court majority said it could not uphold Chester’s conviction because there was no evidence he ever told his stepdaughter what he was doing or influenced her behavior on the tape.

In the Myers case, the high court said that the current law against sexual exploitation of a minor can be applied when the person being filmed is aware of the action, and is, whether willingly or not, given a role in the production.