By John Balch
News-Leader Staff
More than two months after his initial arrest, charges were filed in Hempstead County against a Blevins nurse practitioner accused of video voyeurism and possessing child pornography.
Justice Lee West, 30, of Blevins, was officially charged Jan. 16 with video voyeurism and three counts of distributing, possessing or viewing of matter depicting sexually explicit conduct involving a child, which is a Class C felony that carries a prison term up not less than three years and up to 10 and a fine up to $10,000. Video voyeurism is a Class D felony with a prison term up to six years and a fine up to $10,000.
West was first arrested Nov. 7, 2019 for video voyeurism and released the following morning on $10,000 bond. An investigation into West had been carried out in late October after a 14-year-old female reportedly discovered a camera disguised as a cell phone charger pointed in the direction where she showered.
According to information filed Jan. 16, the female subject located a SD recording card in the device and she advised she flushed the card down the toilet. She also told investigators the camera belonged to West.
Court records also stated that as the juvenile left for school West asked about the card and when told of its whereabouts, he allegedly responded, “No really, where is it?” West then reportedly offered the child $200 to “keep her mouth shut” and he would pay her after school. The juvenile reported to the incident to her mother that afternoon and has not had any contact with the West since, according to case records.
West’s Nov. 7 arrest led investigators to his cell phone for which a search warrant was obtained for access. A separate search warrant was also obtained for West’s iCloud account. On the storage account identified as belonging to West, investigators found three pictures involving a “nude, prepubescent juvenile female.”
West was arrested the second time Dec. 20. He was released from jail Dec. 23 on $20,000 bond.
West is currently employed as an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse or nurse practitioner at CHI St. Vincent clinic in Murfreesboro. He is also a former Emergency Room nurse at Howard Memorial Hospital.
At the time of his 2019 arrest, a CHI St. Vincent spokesperson said West had been placed on administrative leave without pay pending further investigation. As of Tuesday morning, The Nashville News-Leader was unable to obtain a response from CHI St. Vincent regarding West’s current clinic status.
West has also served as president of the Blevins School Board and was a first responder and member of the local fire department.
