Felony charges dropped against man accused of filming women in North East winery bathroom

Tim Hahn, Erie Times-News
·1 min read
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A Chautauqua County man accused of using his phone to film women using the bathroom at a North East Township winery in March will no longer face felony charges as the criminal case against him advances in court.

Erie County prosecutors on Thursday withdrew two third-degree felony counts of intercept of communications that the Pennsylvania State Police filed against 31-year-old Gregory R. Peterson in the March 25 incident at Arundel Cellars & Brewing Co., 11727 East Main Road in North East Township.

Peterson, of Kennedy, New York, waived to court two second-degree misdemeanor counts of invasion of privacy at his preliminary hearing before North East District Judge Scott Hammer Thursday morning. He remains free on his own recognizance.

Assistant District Attorney Robert Ferguson said the felony counts were dropped because the charge did not fit the allegations made against Peterson in the incident.

Prosecutors have withdrawn two felony charges that the Pennsylvania State Police filed against a Chautauqua County man accused of filming women using the restroom at a North East Township winery on March 25, 2023. The main waived two misdemeanor counts of invasion of privacy to court in the case.
Prosecutors have withdrawn two felony charges that the Pennsylvania State Police filed against a Chautauqua County man accused of filming women using the restroom at a North East Township winery on March 25, 2023. The main waived two misdemeanor counts of invasion of privacy to court in the case.

The filming incident was reported shortly before 3:30 p.m. March 25. State police were called to Arundel Cellars to investigate a disturbance and were met by the victims and Peterson when they arrived, according to information in Peterson's criminal complaint.

Troopers wrote that they learned that Peterson had reportedly gone into the women's restroom and into a middle stall, where he filmed two women from underneath the stall. Both victims said they saw the phone and stated that its video timer was running, according to information in the complaint.

Peterson was taken to the state police Erie station in Lawrence Park Township, where he "admitted to his wrongdoings," the investigating trooper wrote in the criminal complaint.

Peterson was arraigned on the charges later that night.

State police seized Peterson's phone as part of the investigation, according to authorities.

Contact Tim Hahn at thahn@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNhahn.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: DA drops felony counts against man in NE winery bathroom filming case