Tiffany Farrow/The Valdosta Daily Times Rick English, left, stands with his attorney, Sam Dennis, just after hearing the guilty verdict after the trial in Lowndes County Superior Court in October 2005.

VALDOSTA — After filing an appeal with the Georgia Court of Appeals more than a year ago, Rick English, former assistant superintendent and finance director for the Valdosta City School System, won his appeal and the charges against him have been dismissed.

“On behalf of Mr. English and his family, we are pleased that Rick won his appeal, proving this case was never more than a misdemeanor case,” Sam D. Dennis, English’s attorney, said.

The case began on Nov. 15, 2004, when English was arrested and charged with felony Peeping Tom. English voluntarily surrendered on Monday, Nov. 16, 2004, and was released on $10,000 bond the same day. English was then charged with criminal trespass and misdemeanor criminal trespass for unlawful purpose on Nov. 17, 2004. Again, English surrendered himself and was released, according to previous reports.

Two days prior to his initial arrest, a picture of English was captured by a wild game camera installed outside a home in the Stone Creek Subdivision. The camera had been installed by the father of a 14-year-old girl just hours before the incident occurred, after a suspected peeping incident outside the girl’s bedroom window the previous week.

Sheriff Ashley Paulk stated during a previous interview with The Valdosta Daily Times that there was also evidence that English tried to remove the camera from its location.

Dennis said that his client was searching for his cat in the neighborhood after it ran out of his garage into the bushes of a neighbor’s yard.

English said that when he went to retrieve his cat he found himself tangled in fishing wire in the bushes and was startled by the motion sensitive camera, which snapped a picture of English.

One month following his arrest, English voluntarily resigned from his position with the Valdosta City School System, effective Dec. 17, 2004. English was eligible for retirement at the time of his resignation after serving for

30 years in the education field.

A Lowndes County grand jury indicted English on charges of Peeping Tom and criminal attempt to tamper with evidence, both felonies, according to reports. English was never indicted on the charge of criminal trespass for unlawful purpose.

Following the trial in the Superior Court of Lowndes County, English was found guilty of misdemeanor criminal trespassing and felony criminal attempt to tamper with evidence on Oct. 6, 2005.

Following the trial, Dennis stated that he believed the felony charge, attempt to tamper with evidence, would be reduced to a misdemeanor.

On Nov. 16, 2005, English was sentenced to two years of probation, including six months in the Lowndes County Jail — to be served consecutively — 400 hours of community service and $2,000 in fines, according to the sentence report. English served nearly two months of his six-month sentence and was released from the jail on Jan. 12, 2006, following a recommendation made by Lt. Michelle Keene.

English filed his appeal on Dec. 16, 2005, arguing that the court erred by allowing the State to waive its closing argument until after the defense had given its closing argument, in imposing a felony sentence on the attempted tampering count, in failing to instruct the jury on the difference between misdemeanor and felony tampering with evidence, and in failing to allow the jury to determine whether English’s conduct constituted a misdemeanor or a felony, according to the appeal.

On Dec. 18, 2006, the Court of Appeals reversed the Superior Court’s imposition of a felony sentence on the attempted tampering with evidence count, negating the need to rule on the remaining allegations, but upheld the Superior’s Court ruling on the closing arguments.

Finding no evidence to support the imposition of a felony sentence, the Court of Appeals ruled that the Superior Court was required to impose a misdemeanor punishment, according to the opinion of the Court of Appeals.

“This victory and the jury’s verdict reflect the truth in this case and refutes the reckless suggestion that Rick was ever a Peeping Tom,” Dennis stated in a press release. “There has been no adjudication of guilt, and these charges have now been dismissed pursuant to Georgia’s First Offender Act and Mr. English has been completely discharged from this case.”

Dennis added that he was honored to have represented English, adding that there was never a question in his mind that English was not a Peeping Tom.

“That suggestion of ‘Peeping Tom’ was always made by the powers that be, never made by the evidence,” Dennis said. “I only hope that somehow Rick’s good name can be restored and I hope he will be again remembered for his hard work and dedication to this community and not as a footnote to this zealous prosecution or to the unfortunate suggestion that was recklessly made to the public and this community before Mr. English ever had an opportunity to have his day in court.”

English began his career with the Valdosta City School System in 1976 as a sixth grade teacher. After serving as a teacher at Lomax-Pinevale Elementary School, Sallas-Mahone Elementary School and West Gordon Elementary School, English served as assistant principal of Southeast Elementary School. One year later, English accepted the position as principal of W.G. Nunn Elementary School before returning to West Gordon as the school’s principal two years later. In 1987, he moved to serve as principal for Sallas-Mahone before being named assistant superintendent and finance director in July 2004.

English has served the community as a volunteer soccer, football and baseball coach and has been involved with the YMCA and other community sporting events since 1987. He also served on numerous committees within the community and others within the school systems including accreditation, discipline, school nutrition and policy review committees, among many others, according to the memorandum in aid of sentencing.

English earned his bachelor’s degree from Valdosta State University in 1976 before receiving master’s degrees in administration and supervision and elementary education, K-8, in 1980 from the university. In 1984, English began work on his Ph.D. through Georgia State University, according to the memorandum in aid of sentencing.