Peeping Tom pleads to obscenity charge

Photo provided by 18th Judicial District Attorney's OfficeCharles Kazmir, 24, of Brusly, is shown peeping into a 16-year-old neighbor's window in a photograph taken by a deer camera set up by the Brusly Police Department in 2009. Kazmir pleaded guilty to one count of obscenity on Thursday.

PORT ALLEN — An admitted Peeping Tom pleaded guilty Thursday to one count of obscenity after authorities caught him on camera peeking into his 16-year-old neighbor’s bedroom window.

Charles Kazmir, 24, of Brusly, confessed to peering into the girl’s window on seven occasions between January and October 2009.

The Brusly Police Department set up an automated deer camera outside the girl’s bedroom window after the victim’s father noticed someone had been rearranging a loose pile of bricks outside the home, said Col. Richie Johnson, of the West Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office.

Kazmir was using the bricks to stand on in order to get a better view through the girl’s bedroom window, Johnson said.

In photos released by the District Attorney’s Office, Kazmir is shown outside the victim’s home fully dressed at times, and at other times, wearing nothing but a T-shirt as he shuttled back and forth between the girl’s bedroom and bathroom windows.

18th Judicial District Judge Robin Free sentenced Kazmir to a three-year suspended prison term, five years probation and ordered him to undergo "sexual deviant" counseling and pay a $1,200 in fines.

The judge also ruled that Kazmir, 1520 Allene St., Brusly, will have to register as a sex offender and notify his neighbors and area schools that he was convicted of obscenity.

“Out here, we have this country attitude where we feel safe,” Free told Kazmir.

“Then people like you come along and make us realize we’re not safe. We have a 16-year-old child afraid to shower in her own home,” the judge said. “Do you realize what you’ve taken from this child? It’s something you can never give back.”

Free continued to lecture Kazmir for several minutes before imploring the defendant to find a companion.

“Get a girlfriend,” Free said. “They’re giving it away.”

The victim, Emily Tassin, who is now 18, said the peeping incident changed her entire high school career.

“I can’t be alone, I can’t shower in my own bathroom,” Tassin said. “I want him to know how he impacted me.”

Tassin, a high school senior going to LSU in the fall, said she is satisfied with the plea agreement.

“Even though there wasn’t a trial, I’m satisfied with what happened,” she said. “I feel safe that I’ll know where he is at all times.”

Amanda Love, Kazmir’s attorney, said her client was fine with the plea agreement.

“The bottom line is that he made a poor choice. He has a future in front of him,” she said. “He’ll get the counseling he needs to be a productive person.”