Couple awarded $1 million in voyeurism lawsuit

BELLINGHAM – A judge has awarded a couple $1 million in damages after they sued a former Bellingham lifeguard and city employee suspected of videotaping women while they used a staff changing area at an aquatic center.

The Bellingham Herald reported the woman in the lawsuit said the video voyeurism caused her mental anguish, altered her and her husband’s marriage and lifestyle and diminished her love for swimming due to the emotional pain and anxiety she feels when changing into a swimsuit.

The woman and her husband filed a lawsuit against the city of Bellingham and the suspect.

On Tuesday, Judge Raquel Montoya-Lewis awarded $750,000 to the woman and $250,000 to her husband, more than what their lawyer had asked for.

The court dismissed the woman’s claims against the city in March.