Vermont teacher accused of secretly recording girls in home bathroom and at school

A trainer at Inexperienced Mountain Union Excessive College in Chester has been arrested on federal expenses of manufacturing and possessing little one intercourse abuse supplies, allegedly utilizing hidden cameras in his dwelling toilet and recording younger ladies strolling in entrance of him on the college.

Norman Merrill, II, 45, of Chester, is because of seem Friday in U.S. District Courtroom in Burlington. Federal prosecutors filed discover Thursday that they are going to argue that Merrill needs to be detained whereas the case in opposition to him is pending. 

“The preliminary evaluation of the proof helps a discovering that defendant Merrill can’t be launched on situations, given the hazard he poses to the group,” Assistant United States Lawyer Jonathan Ophardt wrote within the prosecution’s submitting.

“Merrill’s conduct is especially regarding and indicative of hazard to the group in mild of his place as a highschool trainer, and his obvious violation of the belief the group has positioned in him to look after and train their kids,” Ophardt wrote.

Merrill was arrested Thursday after he was indicted by a federal grand jury on the fees of manufacturing and possessing little one intercourse abuse supplies, based on prosecutors.

Chester Police Division officers on Might 7 acquired a report of potential voyeurism at Merrill’s dwelling, based on courtroom paperwork made public on Thursday. Two days later, Chester police interviewed a toddler who reported discovering a recording machine in a toilet at Merrill’s residence, the paperwork confirmed.

The kid additionally informed police about witnessing Merrill at Inexperienced Mountain Union Excessive College, positioning his cellphone by his waist as if he was recording pictures of the younger ladies who have been strolling in entrance of him, based on courtroom data.

Chester police obtained search warrants on Might 10 for Merrill’s dwelling and digital gadgets and executed them the following day, seizing a number of gadgets together with “pinhole cameras” and a “spy digicam,” the filings indicated.

Vermont State Police discovered a reminiscence card stuffed with quite a few movies taken in bogs of unclothed younger ladies, based on courtroom data.  

“The voyeuristic movies seem to have been produced in a number of completely different bogs,” prosecutors wrote in a submitting looking for to carry Merrill in custody. Authorities had not but recognized “all the bogs depicted within the movies” however had related two of them with homes “frequented” by Merrill, they wrote.

A LinkedIn account underneath Merrill’s title recognized him as a “Instructor/Dept Chair at Inexperienced Mountain Union Excessive College.” As of Thursday afternoon, a school listing for the varsity listed Merrill as a language arts trainer. It was not clear how lengthy he has labored on the college.

College officers, together with Two Rivers Supervisory Union Superintendent Lauren Fierman, couldn’t be reached for remark following the U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace’s announcement of Merrill’s arrest late Thursday afternoon. 

About two years in the past, Dean Stearns, former South Royalton College principal, was sentenced to 5 years in jail for secretly recording teenage ladies at his dwelling in Sharon, the Valley Information reported on the time.