Gymnastics Teacher Cited for Voyeurism in Vermont
Update: Jonathan Girard, owner of J Star Gymnastics in North Adams, pleaded not guilty in Vermont District Court in Barre on Thursday, Aug. 10, to a charge of voyeurism. Girard is accused of filming children in a bathroom at a Waterbury, Vt., gymnastics academy earlier this summer while a visiting coach there between July 10 and 14.
His fiancée on July 15 discovered a video of a young teenage girl using the bathroom on an SD card on his computer and at least 20 other clips, according to the Vermont State Police affidavit. The laptop was recovered with the help of North Adams Police but the videos had been deleted. An investigation found four thumbnail images of girls changing on the laptop and an Amazon order for a spy camera, according to the affidavit.
Girard is ordered not to be around children younger than 18 or have contact with the gymnastics academy, according to VtDigger.; he is also reportedly suspending from any contact with USA Gymnastics.
J Star's webpage has only an announcement dating from 2019 and its Facebook page opens to a note that it is not available and that "when this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted."
Voyeurism is a misdemeanor charge in Vermont that carries a sentence of up to two years and maximum fine of $1,000.
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A local gymnastics teacher is being charged with voyeurism in Vermont.
Jonathan Girard, 39, was cited through his attorney on Monday for allegedly taking videos of individuals in a bathroom of the Central Vermont Gymnastics Academy in Waterbury last month.
The report by Vermont State Police did not give any information on the individuals recorded. The academy runs a variety of gymnastics camps for juveniles during the summer, according to its website.
Girard was a visiting coach at the academy, according to Vermont State Police, which received a report about the video recordings on July 15. The incidents took place between July 10 and July 14, according to the report.
North Adams Police assisted in seizing Girard's computer and detectives with Vermont's Bureau of Criminal Investigation, using digital forensic analysis, said it "located evidence of the crime."
Girard is scheduled to be arraigned in Vermont Superior Court in Barre on Thursday.
