A man who held his cellphone above a shower cubicle wall and filmed a 22-year-old male in the shower, has been convicted and sentenced to six months' supervision on a Crimes Act charge of making an intimate visual recording.
Jiajun Zhong (22), of Dunedin, had admitted intentionally or recklessly making an intimate visual recording of a person.
Zhong was before the Dunedin District Court yesterday seeking a discharge without conviction.
But Judge Kevin Phillips refused a discharge given the gravity of the offending, he said.
The police summary said Zhong and the victim were members of a group involved in testing the absorption rate of a vitamin A substance.
Testing, over three consecutive weekends, required the participants to stay at a Cumberland St address from Friday to Sunday each week.
About 6.45am on May 28 the victim had just finished showering and was drying off in a shower cubicle. He looked up and noticed a cellphone with a distinctive blue cover being held above the cubicle wall. The camera lens was facing towards him. He dressed and left.
About three to five minutes later, the victim saw Zhong return to the room occupied by the test subjects.
Zhong sat on his bed and began using the cellphone the victim had just seen filming him in the shower.
Spoken to by police, Zhong said he spent a large amount of time playing games on his phone over the weekend.
Counsel Jo Turner acknowledged that for Zhong the consequences of a conviction were difficult to define.
He gave in to temptation to make a recording but had goals and ambitions and intended to study towards a career, she said.
His mother did not speak English and his life before coming to Dunedin consisted of attending school and working in the family business.
He lacked social opportunities outside that background and was introverted and a very private young man struggling in isolation with life issues.
He had investigated attending counselling. But there was a financial barrier. When he enrolled as a student he would be able to avail himself of free counselling.
Police had looked at both his cellphone and his computer.
"This is something he has done once. He has learned his lesson and will do nothing like it ever again,'' Ms Turner submitted, asking that Zhong be allowed to move on without the stigma of a conviction.
Police prosecutor Tim Hambleton said police opposed a discharge "based on the lack of consequences''. There was nothing sufficient for a discharge without conviction, he said.
Judge Phillips said what occurred was "premeditated and planned, not reactive'' and the vulnerability of the victim high.
Refusing a discharge, the judge accepted Ms Turner's sentencing submission that supervision was appropriate. Zhong needed help and support to ensure he would not be back in court.
A condition of Zhong's supervision is to undergo any counselling or treatment for offending-related issues, as directed by probation.
