Norman council directs staff to pursue repeal of municipal 'peeping tom' ordinance to allow state charges

The Norman City Council on Aug. 12 directed staff to pursue repealing municipal code section 24-308 so officers can bring peeping-related cases under Oklahoma statute 21 O.S. §11-71, City Attorney and police officials said at a City Council conference.

Council and staff said the change aims to ensure peeping-related arrests enter state records and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) database. City Attorney explained municipal court punishment limits and record rules prevent many municipal citations from producing fingerprints or OSBI records, which can hinder multi-jurisdiction investigations.

Deputy Chief Jackson described a serial offender investigation to illustrate the practical effect. "When he was arrested for peeping tom, he had been arrested for a number of peeping tom cases, but they were filed in municipal court, which is not a court of record," Jackson said. He told the council that municipal filings often do not produce fingerprints or state reporting that investigators use to identify patterns across jurisdictions.

City Attorney explained that Norman's municipal ordinance (section 24-308) mirrors language in 21 O.S. §11-71 but omits the state statute's punishment language because municipal court penalties are limited (the city attorney said municipal fines are $750 and/or 60 days in jail). The ordinance’s subsection referring to felonies is problematic because municipal court cannot adjudicate felonies; felony prosecutions must go to district court, the attorney said. Repeal would allow officers to file those offenses directly under state law when appropriate.

Councilors and staff cited a small number of recent municipal peeping citations. The city attorney said three peeping-related municipal cases were filed in the past five years: a March 2023 citation for an individual identified in the file as Cody Plunkett that was ultimately dismissed after a PhD report documenting significant developmental disabilities; a March 2, 2024 citation involving an individual named Alan Hooper with a history of indecent exposure reports; and a May 22, 2024 incident in which a store employee confiscated a suspect’s phone and gave it to officers. City Attorney noted these municipal cases did not produce follow-up district-court filings or broader state records in those instances.

Officials also noted that Oklahoma City and Tulsa operate courts of record, so peeping charges there more often produce fingerprints and state reporting; Norman does not currently operate as a court of record. The council was told the recent courtroom remodel was designed to accommodate a court of record in the future.

No formal ordinance vote occurred at the meeting; the council expressed no objection to moving forward with drafting repeal language and pursuing potential state-level changes. The discussion closed with staff and the City Attorney directed to take the next steps toward repeal and to coordinate with the district attorney where appropriate.

The council did not set a public hearing or adoption date at the meeting; staff said next steps would include preparing draft language and returning with options for council consideration.