SLO gym owner sentenced for hiding camera in bathroom. How much jail time will he serve?
The San Luis Obispo gym owner who admitted to hiding a camera in the bathroom was formally sentenced to about a year and jail Tuesday morning.
Cole Corrigan, 36, pleaded guilty to charges of felon in possession of a firearm, a felony, and two misdemeanor counts of using an instrument to record in an area of privacy for sexual gratification on Nov. 28.
The guilty plea came after police said they found videos of two people on Corrigan’s camera. Corrigan told The Tribune in an exclusive interview that the camera was not recording and was only meant to catch someone stealing.
As part of a plea deal, Corrigan agreed to serve 364 days in jail and two years of probation and will be subject to drug tests and searches of his electronics, in addition to typical probation requirements. Corrigan is also barred from contacting the two victims in the case for 10 years.
If Corrigan violates his probation, he could face up to three years in state prison.
Corrigan first went to jail on Dec. 19 and has served 43 days in custody, for which he received 85 days of credit based on it being a nonviolent crime. Corrigan will end up serving a total of about six months in jail with good behavior.
SLO gym owner admits to hiding camera
Corrigan was initially charged with five crimes after police searched his home in relation to a hidden camera found in the restroom of CCC Fitness — Corrigan’s “24-hour gym for females” — in September.
Detectives found a “ghost gun,” ammunition and a misdemeanor amount of testosterone, police said at the time.
Corrigan was previously convicted of multiple crimes, including felony drug charges, between 2006 and 2008 and is not able to legally own a gun.
The San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office charged Corrigan with three felony gun charges and two misdemeanors: using an instrument to view an area of privacy and possession of testosterone.
Corrigan pleaded not guilty to the crimes on Sept. 27.
Corrigan admitted to hiding the camera in the restroom in an exclusive Tribune interview Oct. 23. He said he hid the camera to catch a thief, adding that the footage was only accessible via a livestream with no way to record footage for later viewing.
But on Nov. 3, San Luis Obispo Police Department said detectives found recordings of two women on Corrigan’s camera.
The San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office subsequently modified the charges against Corrigan, adding a second misdemeanor privacy charge. The agency alleged Corrigan violated the privacy of two Jane Doe victims for sexual gratification, according to the charge sheet.
Corrigan ultimately pleaded guilty to one gun charge and the two privacy charges.
