Ex-BYUI student sentenced for hiding camera in women’s bathroom
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REXBURG — A former Brigham Young University-Idaho student was sentenced Monday on a felony sex crime after he hid a camera and recorded women in their apartment bathroom.
Devan MacCabe, 23, was booked into the Madison County Jail on Jan. 20 on one felony count of video voyeurism. The Salem, Utah man pleaded guilty to the charge in April.
During Monday’s sentencing hearing, Madison County deputy prosecuting attorney Rob Wood recommended MacCabe serve two to five years on probation.
“He should at least get the chance to be on probation, do treatment and see if he can succeed,” Wood said.
MacCabe’s defense attorney, James Archibald, asked for probation for his client and highlighted that his client has already sought treatment while awaiting sentencing.
“We ask the court to not require him to register as a sex offender,” Archibald said.
There was debate about the actual number of victims in the case.
Judge Gregory Moeller suggested there were six victims because six women lived in the apartment.
Archibald argued there was only one woman videotaped undressed for ten seconds. Another was recorded while using the restroom but Archibald said she should not be considered a victim.
WATCH: DEFENSE ATTORNEY JAMES ARCHIBALD DISCUSSES VICTIMS IN THE CASE
MacCabe spoke during the sentencing hearing and said he has started a piano tuning business since his arrest. He talked about being addicted to pornography and other struggles he’s encountered.
“Throughout my life, I’ve always spent every minute of every day doing everything I possibly can to try my very best in life,” MacCabe said.
WATCH: DEVAN MACCABE SPEAKS IN COURT
Moeller addressed issues discovered in MacCabe’s polygraph test that revealed a history of voyeurism.
According to a pre-sentence report, MacCabe admitted that he had, on another occasion, planted a GoPro camera in a closet of the same apartment and recorded a woman undressing.
In another voyeuristic act, MacCabe admitted to watching a woman shower without her knowledge.
Moeller also addressed concerns that MacCabe originally blamed the apartment complex maintenance man for the hidden camera.
“You were initially playing along with the roommates conclusion that someone else must be to blame because they knew your ‘character’ and knew that your weren’t capable of this,” Moeller said. “They looked at the SD card and found there were pictures of you on there suggesting it was your SD card. You had these six girls manipulated into wanting to blame some maintenance man at the apartment complex for what you had done.”
WATCH: JUDGE GREGORY MOELLER SPEAKS TO MACCABE DURING COURT PROCEEDINGS
Moeller ended up sentencing MacCabe to a suspended prison term of two to five years with five years of supervised sex-offender probation. He can not own anything with a camera or anything that connects to the internet.
“No smart phone with you,” Moeller said to MacCabe.
MacCabe was ordered to pay various fines and to reimburse counseling service costs for the victims.
He will also serve sixty days in the Madison County jail with credit for ten days served. MacCabe will not have to register as a sex offender because Idaho law does not permit first time voyeurism offenders to register.
