A judge cleared a 61-year-old man Thursday for taking cell phone pictures up the skirt of a 13-year-old girl at a Target, saying it wasn’t technically illegal.
Patrick Buono booking photo.
Washington County Sheriff's Department / Via oregonlive.com
The ruling on Thursday ended a case that began when Patrick Buono, 61, "upskirted" a 13-year-old girl at a Target on Jan. 3, 2014. Buono allegedly followed the girl into the store, then, according to Deputy District Attorney Paul Maloney, "surreptitiously creeped up behind her and stuck a camera up her skirt."
Maloney told BuzzFeed News on Friday that the girl's mother reported the incident, which was corroborated by witnesses. Investigators later figured out who Buono was by talking to store employees and checking security footage.
Police later searched Buono's home and seized several digital devices, but apparently didn't find the iPhone they believe he used, Maloney said.
Buono's lawyer, Mark Lawrence, told BuzzFeed News that his client admitted to shooting the pictures, but "by admitting it, he's not saying it's moral or right."
"He's very empathetic and feels bad," Lawrence said of Buono.
Maloney said prosecutors thought Buono was invading the girl's privacy and that he was attempting to create child pornography.
Judge Eric Butterfield called Buono's behavior "appalling" and "lewd," The Oregonian reported. But ultimately, the judge acquitted Buono.
"From a legal point of view, which unfortunately today is my job to enforce, he didn't do anything wrong," Butterfield was reported as saying.
Maloney called it "a technical, legal ruling" that even seemed to disappoint the judge. Among other things, the judge noted that the girl was wearing underwear, and thus not technically nude, Maloney said.
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