Towson University’s longtime diving coach was indicted on criminal charges on Monday in connection with a video-recording device found in the women’s locker room at the Maryland institution last month.
Maureen Mead, 43, was charged in Baltimore County circuit court with interception of a communication, a felony, along with peeping Tom and altering of physical evidence in a criminal proceeding, both of which are misdemeanors.
The grand jury indictment stems from the discovery of a smartphone by members of Towson’s swimming and diving team on 16 October in the Burdick Pool women’s locker room, which is not open to the public.
The university said Mead, the team’s diving coach since 1998, has been placed on administrative leave with pay since the day the device was found pending the outcome of the investigation.
The investigation by the university’s police department prompted the replacement of the Pat Mead, the team’s head coach and Maureen’s husband, who was relieved of his duties on 17 November when the school announced the appointment of first-year assistant Jake Shrum to acting head coach. They have since added Tim Perkins as interim diving coach.
Pat Mead’s removal came one day after team members informed school administrators of their intent to boycott an upcoming dual meet at the University of Pittsburgh over the mounting frustrations with the timeline of the investigation.
“The investigation continues regarding other members of the coaching staff, and we will provide more information as it becomes available,” the university said in a statement provided to the Guardian. “The wellbeing of our student-athletes remains and will continue to be our top priority.”
Swimming World Magazine first reported news of the boycott. The school later withdrew the team from the Pittsburgh Invite, citing a need for the athletes to “refocus, recover and regroup and to prepare to restart the competition schedule in January”.
Several members of the swim team reached by the Guardian by phone declined to comment.
The felony charge against Maureen Mead carries a maximum sentence of penalty of five years in prison and $10,000 in fines.
Attempts to reach Maureen Mead by phone have been unsuccessful and her voice mailbox was full as of Tuesday afternoon.
The state-funded university has remained extremely tight-lipped throughout the investigation.
Cody Boteler, senior editor of the nonprofit, student-run campus newspaper, wrote a scathing editorial when the school attempted to charge more than $2,200 to fulfill a public records request for emails and documents related to the investigation. The fees were ultimately waived, but he said on Tuesday he’s been disappointed with the dearth of information released by the school over the past month.
“This is easily the most frustrated I’ve been with the school working on a story,” said Boteler, a junior studying journalism and environmental science. “There have been a lot of walls hit.”
Both the Meads and first-year assistant coach Adrienne Phillips have been removed from the team roster on the school’s athletics website.