A previously-convicted sex offender from Oregon received nine months in jail this month on a charge he took upskirt photos of a 9-year-old during a wedding in La Center in 2018.
On Dec. 3, Carl Rainey, 32, received his sentence for one count of second-degree “internet viewing depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct,” according to court documents. Rainey initially faced a charge of first-degree voyeurism but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge Oct. 24 as part of a plea deal.
Rainey was originally arrested in January on a warrant issued in October 2018 for the incident that occurred in August. According to probable cause documents, Rainey was noticed attempting to take an upskirt photo of the underage girl by one of the photographers at the wedding hosted at La Center Community Park.
The photographer had seen Rainey get the attention of the girl then distract her as he attempted to take a photo between her legs.
The photographer confronted Rainey about the incident, the document stated, at which point the suspect became agitated and ran out of the ceremony. The bride went after Rainey, demanding his phone, but he fled on foot with his father, Rodney Rainey, following him.
According to the probable cause document, Rodney Rainey had told responding officers that his son was not taking upskirt photos, instead saying he dropped the phone and the flashes of light seen were from an accidental button press, not an intentional snapshot.
Rainey had previously pleaded guilty in 2013 to a similar incident at a Gresham Fred Meyer, where he took photos of a mother and daughter over a changing room door. According to Fox 12 Oregon, Rainey served four months in jail and five years of probation that expired prior to the August incident.
The wedding’s bride gave a victim’s statement as part of court documents at the time of sentencing, noting how she chased Rainey as he attempted to flee the scene, having her dress torn in the chase.
She stated that the incident had damaged relationships with friends and family, adding she did not believe the plea held Rainey accountable for what he had done.
“We’ll never get our wedding reception back,” the bride wrote.
