Former teacher 31-year-old Andrew Emmons appeared in court Monday morning to face accusations that he secretly videotaped underage girls and relatives.
The prosecutions says he made two separate recordings of girls inside a locker room at Boonville Middle School. Officials say that 16 girls, most of them 13 years old, were allegedly recorded inside that locker room.
14 News learned that one of the cameras he allegedly used was hidden inside a shampoo bottle.
A judge granted Emmons bond and he was released from jail on Tuesday. Parents of the victims say they are devastated that he is to go free.
Andrew Emmons' attorney and family left the Warrick county courtroom Monday, minutes after Judge Keith Meier awarded bond. His attorney says Emmons could be released from jail on Tuesday.
Also inside, a Boonville mom, who says her daughter is a victim. Parents of the victims say they are devastated that he could go free.
"She has brought her mattress and sometimes sleeps on my bedroom floor. She goes to counseling now. It's affected her life tremendously. Tremendously," that parent said.
Court documents show Emmons is accused of putting cameras in a girls' locker room in a faculty restroom and in his mother-in-law's home.
Prosecutors say 25 victims in all.
A witness testified that Emmons has been in treatment in Tennessee for an alleged sex addiction.
"These are 13 year old kids. He can say now, 'oh I was sick. That's why I did that.' You go get counseling, it makes you look better. What about our kids? They were innocent. They have to live with this for the rest of their life," the parent said.
Emmons attorney Anthony Long attacked Prosecutor Joann Krantz.
"If this man was a risk to society, then she's been derelict in her duties for the last four and a half months to protect our society. They know he's not a risk," Long said.
But to the victims, he is.
"This was a man they trusted. They liked him. They trusted him. He has betrayed every child in that school," the parent said to 14 News.
Prosecutor Joann Krantz had no comment to our questions.
When Emmons posts bond that was set at $14,000, he will have to follow the judge's rules and wear a GPS monitoring device. A trial is expected later this year.
On Friday, the Boonville Police Department arrested 31-year-old Emmons on a felony warrant at his home in Newburgh, IN.
Andrew Emmons. Source: Warrick County Detention Center
Emmons signing paperwork to be released on bond from the Warrick Co. Jail. (2/5/13)
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