BY TANYA BRICKING
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Wayne Halker
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A man Cincinnati police say stalked children outside an elementary school was in jail Tuesday while police reviewed videotapes, pictures and a computer seized from his car and his North Bend home.
Wayne Halker, 30, pleaded not guilty Tuesday in Hamilton County Municipal Court to a misdemeanor charge of menacing by stalking. If convicted, he faces a maximum of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
Judge Mark Schweikert set his bond at $100,000, payable at 10 percent, and ordered Mr. Halker to sign a temporary order requiring him to stay away from St. Lawrence School in Price Hill and from a child whose parent filed a complaint.
But if items police seized from Mr. Halker contain sexual material, prosecutors will push for indictments on felony charges, said Charlie Rubenstein, chief assistant city prosecutor.
Mr. Rubenstein characterized Mr. Halker as a danger to the community because of the alarm caused to parents and school officials. St. Lawrence's principal sent home a letter with students Friday warning parents that a man had been seen outside the school videotaping and following children.
"He indicated to officers that he takes the videotapes back home and watches them for his own sexual pleasure," Mr. Rubenstein said in court Tuesday.
Mr. Halker lives with his parents and is a college graduate who works three jobs, his attorney said Tuesday.
Mr. Rubenstein said Mr. Walker has been hanging around elementary schools since at least last spring.
Police arrested him Monday after a parent at St. Lawrence complained and witnesses said they saw him videotaping, following and hiding from children Sept. 29.
Mr. Halker has a 1995 conviction in Hamilton County for public indecency. He pleaded no contest, meaning he admitted to the facts of the case, which involved masturbating in public Oct. 2, 1995, on River Road.
The Cincinnati Police Division's personal crimes unit is investigating. Police will continue reviewing the evidence before a grand jury decides whether Mr. Halker will be indicted.
In addition to videos and pictures, items seized include an index card listing the opening and closing times of several west-side schools, Mr. Rubenstein said.
