Camp Counselor Busted on Child Porn Charges
Suspected of Trafficking Photos of Campers on Internet
By Amy Worden
Originally published by APBNews.com, August 20, 1999
HEBRON, N.H. (APBnews.com) — A camp counselor is accused of downloading thousands of pornographic photos of children and taking photographs of pre-adolescent campers that he may have trafficked on the Internet, authorities said today.
Jeremy Lacey, 19, of Norwich, Vt., pleaded innocent Wednesday to four counts of child pornography/use of a child in a sexual performance. The charges stem from the thousands of pornographic files found on computer disks seized from four locations in Vermont and New Hampshire.
Each count carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence.
"This is the largest volume we've seen in Vermont," said Detective Michael Schirling of the Chittenden County, Vt., Special Investigations Unit. "There were 1,268 files on one disk. We anticipate finding over 10,000 files."
Seeking photos of 'young, white boys'
Vermont police are handling the initial charges, while New Hampshire police are conducting a separate investigation of Lacey's activities at Camp Mowglis, where he had been a swimming instructor for four years.
Lacey, a student at the University of Vermont and president of his fraternity there, turned himself in following a three-week investigation that revealed he had posted a request for nude photos of children on a Web site, Schirling told APBnews.com. He was released to the custody of his parents pending a pretrial hearing in October, police said.
In the request, posted October 1997, the author said he was looking for photos of "young, white (10-13) boys" and offered pictures of "naked boys, ages 9-14, from a summer camp," according to the affidavit.
A search last month of the camp, Lacey's dorm room, the University of Vermont's computer database and his parent's Norwich home turned up seven computer disks with thousands of pornographic files, as well as numerous photographs, police said.
One photo labeled 'Camp Mowglis'
During the searches, police found an address book containing two pages of Web site and newsgroup addresses, including multiple listings for pornographic sites, disks with files containing images of children engaging in sex acts, and photos of partially naked and naked boys, according to the affidavit.
The photos of the pre-adolescent boys included children undressing, exposing their buttocks to the camera and swimming naked. Administrators at Camp Mowglis told police they were not sure whether the images were taken at their camp and could not identify the boys, but at least one of the photos was labeled "Camp Mowglis," the affidavit said.
Police were alerted to the Web posting by a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's Cybertip Line. Officials at Camp Mowglis, where Lacey was working as a waterfront supervisor, said they asked him to leave July 30 after learning of the allegations.
"We are greatly disturbed by this situation and have taken all steps to cooperate with New Hampshire and Vermont law enforcement agencies during their investigation," said camp director Tim Platt. "We believe that it is our responsibility to work closely with state investigators to protect the privacy and well-being of our campers."
Attending the camp for 13 years
Lacey, who was president of an alcohol-free fraternity at the University of Vermont, had a long association with Camp Mowglis, an exclusive camp for boys founded in 1903 on Newfound Lake in northern New Hampshire.
Tuition for a seven-week session this summer was $4,150.
The camp took its name from the boy hero of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book, and the camp's founder received permission from the author to use the name. The camp's Web site emphasizes its strong outdoor tradition of "adventure and learning" in a "structured and safety-oriented atmosphere."
Lacey told police he had attended the camp for 13 years, first as a camper and later as a counselor and waterfront director.
'We are reeling from this'
Members of Camp Mowglis' alumni group were shocked to hear news and feared for the camp's reputation.
"We are reeling from this," said David Beal, a member of the camp board of trustees, who was a second-generation camper when he went there in the 1960s. "We had no idea this was going on."
He said parents of the 80 boys, ages 7 to 14, who attended the camp this year have been notified of the case. As for Lacey, Beal said he did not know him but understood he had a "squeaky-clean record" and that camp administrators had no reason to question him.
Officials with the American Camping Association, which accredits camps such as Camp Mowglis, said after the shootings at Columbine High School in Colorado, it urged all its 2,100 member camps to tighten security, including conducting criminal background checks on counselors.
The association said that, while it's difficult to learn about these incidents when they are going on, they are relatively rare.
Safety steps recommended
"It's not common practice," said Connie Coutellier, the association's director of professional development. "But when pedophiles want access to children, they may apply for any kind of work that gives them that access to children."
She said the association advises parents to inquire about how a camp selects its staff, recommends camps not to allow counselors to be alone with children, and encourages staff members to do spot checks of cabins and shower houses where such activity may occur.
"This is going to happen, in any kind of setting," Coutellier said. "You just try to do everything you can to protect the children."
Coutellier said that, while the camp would not likely lose its accreditation, the association would probably conduct a new review of its hiring procedures.
Beal said the board would re-examine the camp's counselor-screening policies when it meets again this fall. He said the allegations were "sad" but "something that happens today."
