Three women who say they attended West Virginia Junior Trooper programs at the State Police Academy when they were under 18 years old have filed a notice of forthcoming legal action against the West Virginia State Police (WVSP).
Wheeling Attorney Teresa Toriseva represents these women, and up to 20 other female law enforcement officers from around the state, all concerned that they may have been secretly videotaped in the academy women’s locker room.
An active investigation is underway, led by Interim WVSP Superintendent Jack Chambers, looking into the extent that a hidden camera was placed and operated inside the female locker room at the State Police Academy.
Toriseva said in a press release that her clients and other female Junior Trooper program attendees used the female locker room at the academy during the time the cameras may have been in use. She said the taping of the females in the academy did not end until 2020, the same time the Junior Trooper Program was discontinued.
“The deeper the investigation goes, the more shocking the conduct,” Toriseva said in the release. “All the women who came through the academy during the time the camera or cameras were being operated hope they were not filmed. With the admitted destruction of evidence, the burden is now on the West Virginia State Police to prove these women were not filmed.”
Chambers has apologized to any women who were victimized by the hidden camera and has stated he is working to identify all potential victims of the crime.
In the notice to sue, Toriseva said as an alternative to filing suit, her clients request a meeting to discuss these allegations and a possible resolution.
“Voyeurism is never a single incident,” Toriseva said. ”We expect many more in addition to these new three to come forward as the matter progresses.”