By Walter Geiger A local man will likely die in prison after being sentenced to 50 years on multiple charges that were developed after he hung nude photos of a minor female family member in several boys’ restrooms at Lamar County High School on Oct. 17, 2016. The three-day trial of 61-year-old Lance Kershaw culminated in Lamar superior court late Thursday when a jury found him guilty on two counts of child molestation, two counts invasion of privacy and first degree cruelty to children. Judge Bill Fears sentenced Kershaw to 50 years in prison to be followed by 20 years on probation. If he lives to a parole date, he will have to register as a sex offender upon release. Kershaw went to the school at 6:30 a.m. and hung the photos with zip ties. He passed himself off as an employee of a company doing maintenance work at the school. He was arrested later that day and has been in jail since. Surveillance video of Kershaw in the school was played at the trial. A schematic drawing of the school was also found among his belongings at his home on Hwy. 41 South after his arrest. According to testimony at trial, Kershaw had rigged a small camera in a shower at the home to get the photos of the female. A second female testified Kershaw told her he would help her with math homework if she showed him her breasts. Additional testimony indicated Kershaw spent most of his time in a converted semi trailer in the rear of the home that was full of computer towers, drives and other electronic equipment. In it was a hidden room with warning light that flashed if someone entered the trailer. The print out hung at the school included multiple screen shots from the shower. A search of a shredder in the trailer turned up a shredded copy of the same print out that investigators painstakingly pieced back together. Sheriff Brad White called in the GBI to work the case and agents processed numerous SD cards, flash drives and hard drives. At the outset of the case, chief magistrate Karen Jackson issued warrants on 362 counts – 360 of which were for sexual exploitation of children. ******************** NOTICE: This story and photo are under copyright. They may not be republished or disseminated in any form – including social media – without explicit permission. *********************
Be First to Comment