SC man avoids prison but gets warning for Rock Hill child bathroom video
A South Carolina man who used a cellphone to record an 11-year-old boy in a Rock Hill store bathroom will register as a sex offender and serve probation instead of prison time, a judge ruled Thursday.
However, visiting Circuit Court Judge Keith Kelly gave Jerray Marquail Bookert a stern warning about what would happen if he does not complete probation.
Bookert, 38, pleaded guilty to a voyeurism charge Thursday in York County criminal court from the March incident at a T.J. Maxx store near Dave Lyle Boulevard close to Interstate 77. He told Kelly he was sorry for his actions.
“I just want to apologize to the victim and his family,” Bookert told Kelly.
Kelly, from Spartanburg County, accepted a negotiated plea deal between Bookert’s lawyer and 16th Circuit Solicitor’s Office prosecutors for three years probation and sex offender registration.
The judge suspended the maximum three-year prison sentence for the voyeurism as part of the plea deal.
“Sir you violate that probation you and I will see each other again and I will change your address -- you understand?” Kelly said.
Bookert said, “Yes, sir.”
In South Carolina, a judge can order a suspended sentence be changed to active prison time if a convicted person does not complete all requirements of probation.
11-year-old victim chased suspect out of the store
The child victim was not identified by name in court Thursday. His parents were in court but did not address the judge. The Herald does not identify child sex victims.
Prosecutor Alex Harper said Bookert put the phone under an adjacent stall on March 26 while the boy was in the store bathroom.
“The victim confronted the defendant then chased him through T.J. Maxx before alerting his mother to what happened,” Harper said.
The case went unsolved until Bookert turned himself in to Rock Hill police on April 9, Harper said.
Bookert had been free on bail since days after arrest. His lawyer, Chris Lusk of Columbia, said Bookert knows “he made a bad decision” and must face consequences for his actions.
This story was originally published October 17, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
