"In the past year the Charlottesville and Albemarle police departments have each made three Peeping Tom arrests. While it may not be the most common offense, it’s a serious one, according to remarks City Police Chief Timothy Longo made to the Subcommittee on Crime in the Virginia House of Delegates.

Longo was speaking in support of a bill proposed by Del. Rob Bell (R-Albemarle) that would increase a third peeping conviction from a Class 1 misdemeanor to a Class 6 felony. The chief says that the serial rapist, who has been active in Charlottesville for almost 10 years, “is and has been a peeper.”

Should the bill become law, it would require anyone convicted within 10 years of three or more peeping incidents to register with the Virginia Sex Offender Registry. Selected excerpts from Longo’s remarks to the subcommittee follow.—Nell Boeschenstein

Charlottesville Police Chief Tim Longo’s remarks to the House Subcommittee on Crime:

“Peeping Toms have long been viewed as individuals with a perverted sense of reality, but harmless and certainly not viewed upon as dangerous. I can assure you, nothing is further from the truth… As many of you are aware the Charlottesville Police Department is currently pursuing a serial rapist that has plagued our community for almost a decade. He has left over seven women in his wake. Throughout this investigation, we have sought the counsel of numerous agencies… Each of these agencies introduced a common theme to the investigation: THIS GUY IS AND HAS BEEN A PEEPER. Here are but a few examples of what these notable agen-cies convey:

• ‘It is common for him to surveil his victims in advance. Peeping Tom activities are not uncommon.’

• ‘He spends his time window peeping in an attempt to not only identify future victims, but to satisfy his fantasies as well. During his peeping times, he will be on the outside and while watching the victim, he will be engaged in masturbatory activities.‘

• ‘He may have had prior arrests involving nuisance crimes, sexual offenses, Peeping Tom, etc. This type of offender does not wake up on Monday and decide to begin to rape; rather, he moves up a deviant continuum of “nuisance” type offenses, which include peeping. It is not uncommon for him to have been arrested for these types of offenses in the past.’

“[This legislation] is a perfect example of the potential this law would afford law enforcement.

“One of our rights as a citizen is our expectation to privacy afforded to us by the Constitution of the United States. When that right is taken from us by a voyeur, it is degrading and potentially life-altering for many victims. If we continue to maintain status quo and allow peepers to continue with consequences that yield the same result, we minimize the importance of our constitutional guarantee…”" (C-Ville Weekly, January 31, 2006)