Former Marist Student Charged After Placing Cameras in Dyson Bathrooms
“Notification of Campus Incident.”
Emails from Marist Safety with headlines similar to this are ignored; however, Director of Campus Safety Daniel Gough’s email on June 3 immediately captivated the Marist student body, its professors and made substantial local news outside of campus.
From April 27 to May 10, cameras placed in the Dyson Center’s second, third and fourth floor gender-neutral bathrooms by a then-Marist student recorded people using the facilities.
In the six months to follow, most information regarding the case is still private.
Kyle Petrozzi, then a senior studying media studies and production, has been charged with 16 counts of second-degree unlawful surveillance, a class E felony. Marist swiftly expelled Petrozzi ahead of the school’s graduation on May 24. Since being charged, Petrozzi has entered therapy for his “compulsive sexual behaviors.”
Gough had written the 266-word email weeks before clicking send and alerting the Marist community. Finishing up his first year at Marist, Gough preached the importance of being transparent regarding all safety concerns.
“I always want to be as transparent as possible to campus community members, so that they have an awareness of any conduct or crime on campus and can make safety decisions accordingly,” Gough said.
However, he had to wait for legal clearance to share the news. Unsurprisingly, the email rattled campus, leaving students and faculty with more questions than answers.
Gough said, “Any event like this, whether it’s on campus or somewhere else in your daily routine, causes a sense of violation and feeling that ‘Are you ever really safe anywhere?’”
From April 27 to May 10, cameras placed in the Dyson Center’s second, third and fourth floor gender-neutral bathrooms by a then-Marist student recorded people using the facilities. Photo by Luke Sassa ‘24
The story came to light on May 10, when an individual using one of the gender neutral bathrooms in the Dyson Center found a small camera and reported it to campus safety. Immediately, Safety & Security contacted law enforcement and opened an investigation.
To handle this matter, Marist Safety worked closely with local law enforcement in the town, city and stateside. Gough also stated that Marist regularly works closely with federal agencies, including the FBI.
Going forward, Gough explained that they have a full complement of 38 officers who do sweeps of the buildings on campus, on top of their monthly checks for fire safety hazards.
“We are doing periodic checks of all the restrooms and locker rooms on campus. So that’s the regular practice now,” Gough said. “I think everyone’s sensitivity and awareness have increased from this unfortunate and disturbing incident.”
“And that’s not to say we weren’t doing checks previously,” Gough added. “But now there’s a heightened sensitivity and awareness to looking for surveillance devices, not just in bathrooms, but other locations.”
Gough said that the short window of time, coupled with the small size of the recording devices, is the reason the cameras weren’t found in regular checks.
“This is a very safe place, and I feel confident saying that,” he said. “We have more officers on a shift compared to other schools of similar size and demographics.”
Gough also explained that the technology resources on Marist’s campus, for example, the video surveillance systems, license plate recognition systems, car access systems and gunshot detection systems.
“We are fortunate to be in an environment where there's an increased level of appreciation for the importance of safety and resources to ensure that the campus community members are safe compared to other places,” Gough said.
“Still, that doesn't diminish when something like this happens, you feel violated and feel like, ‘Am I ever really safe?” he added.
In the press release from November 20, District Attorney Anthony Parisi stated, “This defendant’s alleged actions represent a serious invasion of personal privacy. No one should ever have to worry that a space as private as a bathroom is being monitored. Marist University responded quickly and worked closely with law enforcement throughout the investigation. We are grateful to the Marist community for their support and to the victims, whose cooperation was essential to the case.”
Under New York’s bail laws, the charges are non-qualifying offenses, meaning the judge could not set bail for Petrozzi. However, Judge Jessica Segal ordered Petrozzi to be released under probation supervision and to surrender his passport.
“I’m always careful to use the word ‘punishment’ because he’s innocent until proven guilty, and I think we have to be thoughtful that this individual might have some mental health issues too,” said Gough.
Under News 10, ABC’s post on Facebook regarding the situation, Richard Portale, the attorney for Petrozzi, commented, “We all deserve privacy and safety in a public bathroom, and the women affected have every right to feel violated. But context matters. No healthy or regulated individual engages in the behavior charged. It is clear that Kyle Petrozzi is struggling with a serious sex-addiction disorder — a compulsive condition that is often hidden, misunderstood, and untreated until it manifests. This does not excuse Kyle’s conduct, but it does help explain it.”
In the comment, Portale continued to explain Petrozzi’s history of Crohn’s disease, a learning disability and untreated compulsive sexual behavior.
"He has and will continue to accept responsibility by entering intensive, specialized sex-addiction treatment immediately upon surrendering himself to authorities. We ask for space for the legal and therapeutic processes to move forward, and for the women impacted to continue receiving the respect and support they deserve,” Portale said.
Though many questions have been asked, few have been answered and will remain unanswered until Jan. 20, the court date set for Petrozzi.
“I wish I could share more, but that's just because I don't want to compromise this case from a legal perspective, and I also want to respect the victim's confidentiality,” said Gough.