LISTEN: Fermanagh schoolboy named in "upskirting" case

By Q Radio News

A former schoolboy who filmed up the skirts of two of his teachers has been convicted of outraging public decency by Enniskillen Magistrates Court.

The court rejected defence claims it was a 'childish prank'.

Eighteen year old Timothy Boomer, was  aged just 14 to 16 when he secretly made five recordings of his teachers at Portora Royal School in Enniskillen between February 2015 and September 2016.

He was not in court today to hear District Judge Michael Ranaghan convict him of five acts of a lewd obscene and disgusting nature, outraging public decency, which he described as a “humiliating” experience for his victims. 

As the verdicts were announced the teachers embraced family members and supporters from their teaching union who were also in court.

District Judge, reading from a summary of the court panel findings, said the acts were of a lewd and disgusting nature, that there was a reasonable expectation that others could have seen the acts taking place, and that both the teaching and student body at the school could be considered members of the public.

The five recordings were found on a USB pen discovered in a classroom on November 24 2016. The then schoolboy later admitted it was his and that he had made the recordings.

Mr. Ranaghan said “the panel found that there was any number of potential witnesses" to the filming and that it would have been clear to anyone witnessing it, that the defendant had “positioned his hand to film up the skirt”.

And that there was “no doubt that the act would have outraged any decent and mature member of the public”.

At a previous hearing the defence had contended that the filming had been an act of “bravado” and amounted to a “childish prank”. 

However, Mr. Ranahan said that he and the panel were not taking into consideration any possible motive behind the schoolboy's actions. And that the panel were satisfied the acts carried out by the defendant were of “lewd obscene and disgusting nature”.

The teenager will be sentenced on March 12.

He's no longer a pupil there and was today found guilty - of committing acts of outraging public decency.

Upskirting has been made an offence in the rest of the UK but no similar legislation can be passed here due to the impasse at Stormont.

(Justin McCamphill of the NASUWT union who attended court this morning)

Justin McCamphill from the NASUWT union - has praised the teachers at the centre of the case: