Steve Powell: 'Nearly out of control sexually my entire life’
SEATTLE -- The man who insisted his missing daughter-in-law's old journal was evidence of her alleged instability has admitted to being "nearly out of control sexually my entire life" in his own diary.
Steve Powell, father-in-law of missing woman Susan Cox Powell, is currently on trial for voyeurism.
According to the state's trial memorandum, the defendant is a "prolific journal writer, hand writing over 2,000 pages worth of journal entries" from as early as 2003.
In those pages, Steve Powell "admits to being (a) voyeur and recording 'women of every age,'" investigators said, and said he "likes taking photos of pretty girls in short skirts, beautiful women of every age" for "self-stimulation."
Steve Powell also wrote he "had been stalking Susan and had been taking secret video of her" and added he "is a voyeur and she (Susan Cox Powell) an exhibitionist, and they are a perfect match,"' the document said.
His journal entries detailed how he fashioned a mirror to fit under the door in order to watch his daughter-in-law in the bathroom. In 2004, he wrote he was "90 percent sure she knew" he was watching, but in later entries expressed doubt that she knew.
"I have been going nuts and nearly out of control sexually my entire life," he wrote. Steven Powell faces 14 counts of voyeurism. He was also initially charged with child pornography; however, the charge was dropped Monday.
Susan Cox Powell is presumed dead, apparently at the hands of her husband, Josh Powell, who was Steve Powell's son. Josh Powell killed himself and the couple's two sons in a fiery explosion in February at a house in Graham.
Josh Powell and the boys had moved into his father's home in Puyallup after Susan Powell's disappearance three years ago.
Officers were searching the home for clues last summer when they said they came across voyeuristic images on Steve Powell's computers. They included shots of young neighbor girls bathing and using the toilet, authorities said.
There also were images of Susan Powell that appeared to be secretly recorded, and pictures of naked women with her head superimposed, authorities said.
The disappearance, which had already drawn national attention, took a bizarre turn last summer as authorities from Washington and Utah stepped up their efforts to solve the case. Steve Powell claimed on TV that he and Susan Powell had a sexually charged relationship, something her parents angrily denied.
Steve Powell's arrest prompted the state to take custody of Josh Powell's sons, Charlie and Braden, who were living with their father at Steve Powell's home.
The boys were turned over to Susan Powell's parents, prompting a custody fight that ended Feb. 5, when Josh Powell locked a social worker out of his home during what was supposed to be a supervised Sunday visit with his sons. He attacked Charlie and Braden, 7 and 5, with a hatchet, then started a gas-fueled fire that consumed all three of them as the social worker frantically called 911.
Steve Powell, who had a close relationship with his son, has remained jailed on $200,000 bail since his arrest in September, and he has made no public statements about the murder-suicide.
If convicted, he would face a guideline sentence of about four years; however, the state has alleged aggravating circumstances that could result in a longer term.
Police in West Valley City, Utah, have characterized Steve Powell as uncooperative in their investigation of Susan Powell's disappearance. He has invoked his right to remain silent, and no evidence has emerged to suggest he traveled to Utah the weekend his daughter-in-law disappeared.
Before he died, Josh Powell maintained he knew nothing about what happened to her because he had taken the boys on a midnight camping trip in the freezing Utah desert when she vanished.
Police say her blood was found in the house, on the floor near a sofa that had just been cleaned, and that within days of her disappearance, Josh Powell cleaned out her retirement accounts. He gave some statements that were obviously false when first questioned by police, investigators said.
One of Steve Powell's lawyers, Mark Quigley, said he expected some of the backstory of the case to be discussed at the trial. But he added: "We know what it's about and what it's not about. It's not about his son and his son's wife." He declined to say whether he expects Steve Powell to testify.
The state's potential witnesses include investigators from Washington and Utah, as well as the mother of the neighbor girls Steve Powell is accused of recording. A jury equally split between 7 men and 7 women, including two alternates, was chosen Tuesday to decide Steve Powell's fate.
Steve Powell, father-in-law of missing woman Susan Cox Powell, is currently on trial for voyeurism.
According to the state's trial memorandum, the defendant is a "prolific journal writer, hand writing over 2,000 pages worth of journal entries" from as early as 2003.
In those pages, Steve Powell "admits to being (a) voyeur and recording 'women of every age,'" investigators said, and said he "likes taking photos of pretty girls in short skirts, beautiful women of every age" for "self-stimulation."
Steve Powell also wrote he "had been stalking Susan and had been taking secret video of her" and added he "is a voyeur and she (Susan Cox Powell) an exhibitionist, and they are a perfect match,"' the document said.
His journal entries detailed how he fashioned a mirror to fit under the door in order to watch his daughter-in-law in the bathroom. In 2004, he wrote he was "90 percent sure she knew" he was watching, but in later entries expressed doubt that she knew.
"I have been going nuts and nearly out of control sexually my entire life," he wrote. Steven Powell faces 14 counts of voyeurism. He was also initially charged with child pornography; however, the charge was dropped Monday.
Susan Cox Powell is presumed dead, apparently at the hands of her husband, Josh Powell, who was Steve Powell's son. Josh Powell killed himself and the couple's two sons in a fiery explosion in February at a house in Graham.
Josh Powell and the boys had moved into his father's home in Puyallup after Susan Powell's disappearance three years ago.
Officers were searching the home for clues last summer when they said they came across voyeuristic images on Steve Powell's computers. They included shots of young neighbor girls bathing and using the toilet, authorities said.
There also were images of Susan Powell that appeared to be secretly recorded, and pictures of naked women with her head superimposed, authorities said.
|
|
Steve Powell's arrest prompted the state to take custody of Josh Powell's sons, Charlie and Braden, who were living with their father at Steve Powell's home.
The boys were turned over to Susan Powell's parents, prompting a custody fight that ended Feb. 5, when Josh Powell locked a social worker out of his home during what was supposed to be a supervised Sunday visit with his sons. He attacked Charlie and Braden, 7 and 5, with a hatchet, then started a gas-fueled fire that consumed all three of them as the social worker frantically called 911.
Steve Powell, who had a close relationship with his son, has remained jailed on $200,000 bail since his arrest in September, and he has made no public statements about the murder-suicide.
If convicted, he would face a guideline sentence of about four years; however, the state has alleged aggravating circumstances that could result in a longer term.
Police in West Valley City, Utah, have characterized Steve Powell as uncooperative in their investigation of Susan Powell's disappearance. He has invoked his right to remain silent, and no evidence has emerged to suggest he traveled to Utah the weekend his daughter-in-law disappeared.
Before he died, Josh Powell maintained he knew nothing about what happened to her because he had taken the boys on a midnight camping trip in the freezing Utah desert when she vanished.
Police say her blood was found in the house, on the floor near a sofa that had just been cleaned, and that within days of her disappearance, Josh Powell cleaned out her retirement accounts. He gave some statements that were obviously false when first questioned by police, investigators said.
One of Steve Powell's lawyers, Mark Quigley, said he expected some of the backstory of the case to be discussed at the trial. But he added: "We know what it's about and what it's not about. It's not about his son and his son's wife." He declined to say whether he expects Steve Powell to testify.
The state's potential witnesses include investigators from Washington and Utah, as well as the mother of the neighbor girls Steve Powell is accused of recording. A jury equally split between 7 men and 7 women, including two alternates, was chosen Tuesday to decide Steve Powell's fate.
