A former Pemberville man is going to prison for videotaping a teen girl without her knowledge.
Joseph Beck, 38, and currently of Toledo, appeared Tuesday in the courtroom of Wood County Common Pleas Judge Matt Reger.
In February, he pleaded guilty to three counts of pandering obscenity involving a minor, all second-degree felonies, and three counts of voyeurism, all fifth-degree felonies.
The victim said the perception of her childhood had been permanently altered and “it felt like a dirty little secret I was keeping” as she made friends at college.
She said Beck shows up in her dreams although the court appearance was the first day she had seen him in person since July, and she is receiving counseling for PTSD.
“These are tough cases,” said defense attorney Steven Crossmock. “I say that as it relates to me as an attorney and as a father.
“I can’t fathom what the victim has gone through. It shatters innocence, it shatters dreams, it shatters lives,” he said.
He cited a similar case where the defendant was placed on community control for four years and served seven days in jail.
Crossmock said he was prepared to ask for that sentence.
“That’s a possible sentence because there’s a presumption for a prison sentence but it’s not mandatory,” he said.
Wood County Assistant Prosecutor Charles McDonald said the cases weren’t similar.
“He made child exploitation material,” he said of Beck.
Investigators found three separate videos involving nudity, he said, and agreed with Crossmock’s statement that there was no evidence of distribution.
Beck created the videos for his own use, Crossmock said.
The victim’s mother described the impact this experience had on her.
“I cannot describe the shock and horror of opening those videos and seeing my daughter on the screen,” she said.
Over the following weeks, she ripped the house apart looking for more devices and found one in the bathroom, she said.
She said she believes Beck perpetrated this behavior when her daughter was between the ages of 10-16.
Reger said in the presentence investigation, Beck said he had pleaded guilty because he had bought the camera.
“This is my fault,” Beck said in court. “I purchased those devices. I’m the reason they were there.”
Purchasing the items is not what you’re charged with, Reger responded.
“You recorded a minor in a home in a state of nudity. Buying the cameras is not the illegal act,” Reger said.
“I’m sorry to her, the whole family, for putting them through this,” Beck said. “Whatever I have to do to make it right, I’m willing to do.”
Reger said the seriousness of the case can’t be overstated and the victim was harmed “in a way that was unimaginable and immeasurable.”
He imposed four-year sentences for each of the pandering charges to be served consecutive. One charge fell within Reagan Tokes Act qualifications, making the minimum sentence 12 years and the maximum 14 years.
Reger imposed 12-month sentences for each of the voyeurism charges, to be served concurrently.
Upon his release from prison, Beck must register as a Tier II sex offender, which will require him to register every 180 days from 25 years.
He must also pay $2,926 in restitution for counseling services received by the victim.
Four charges of pandering and four charges of voyeurism were dismissed.
