Head of Cal Poly ROTC accused of hiding camera in store dressing room

An Army officer who formerly headed Cal Poly’s Military Science Department is facing criminal charges after he was accused of hiding a camera in the dressing room of a Pismo Beach clothing store.

Lt. Col. Jacob Sweatland was arrested in September on suspicion of hiding the camera in the dressing room of the Pac Sun outlet in Pismo Beach and resisting a peace office, according to documents obtained by The Tribune.

He is facing two misdemeanor charges. He was removed from his position at Cal Poly and is seeking to have his case heard in military diversion court.

The Military Science Department is also known as ROTC, or Reserve Officer’s Training Corps.

Key fob found on floor had a hidden camera

On Sept. 2, Pismo Beach Police Department Commander Chris Trimble told The Tribune, a customer found an object that resembled a key fob in one of the dressing rooms at the store. Upon further inspection, it was discovered that the object had a built-in hidden camera.

That’s when the store, which caters its clothing to teens, called Pismo Beach police and they opened an investigation, Trimble said.

Two days later on Sept. 4, Trimble said, the store contacted the police again to report that a man — now identified as Sweatland — came back to the store to retrieve an item that he may have left in the store, which was suspected to be the hidden camera.

When police responded, Sweatland ran from officers before eventually being caught near the 200 block of Elaine Way in Pismo Beach — about a mile away from the outlets — according to documents obtained by The Tribune.

The San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office charged Sweatland with resisting a peace officer and invasion of privacy, both misdemeanors, on Oct. 28, according to his charge sheet. He is currently out on bond, court documents show, and has asked his case to be moved to diversion court.

What is military diversion court?

Similar to mental health diversion court, military diversion court is meant for veterans whose alleged crimes are a result of a mental illness they obtained because of their military service. It aims to treat the mental illness that caused the alleged crime, rather than put someone through the criminal system.

“It’s for a direct, causal connection between mental illness from military service and the alleged crime, and County Mental Health already said (Sweatland) would qualify for the program,” Ilan Funke-Bilu, Sweatland’s attorney, told The Tribune.

Funke-Bilu said his client is a decorated veteran who has been deployed four times — in Colombia, Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq — and has a mental health diagnosis “directly linked to his service for our country.”

The attorney hopes the judge will grant Sweatland the opportunity for treatment rather than potential jail time, he said.

Former ROTC head no longer teaching at Cal Poly

Sweatland is not currently teaching classes on campus or interacting with students, Cal Poly spokesperson Matt Lazier told The Tribune in an email.

“Cal Poly takes very seriously any conduct or behavior that could negatively impact our university community. We have worked closely with Pismo Beach police on their investigation into Sweatland and have determined that no criminal activity connected with this case is alleged to have happened on the university’s campus,” he said.

Lazier also said Sweatland’s current position is appointed by the Army rather than the university.

“Cal Poly is awaiting word from the Army as it completes its investigative process,” he said.

The U.S. Army Cadet Command told The Tribune in an emailed statement that Sweatland has been removed from his position at Cal Poly as department chair, is barred from campus and was placed in a “teleworking status until the conclusion of both the Army Criminal Investigation Division and local law enforcement investigation.”

“The command does not condone this behavior and takes all allegations of misconduct seriously as they contradict the Army Values and what we stand for,” the command said.

A hearing to decide whether Sweatland’s case will go through military diversion will be held March 13.