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Erin Andrews Stalker Banned From Internet

by Amar Toor on October 6, 2009 at 01:35 PM

Even the most casual of male sports fans is probably familiar with the stellar career of ESPN sideline reporter Erin Andrews. When she's not delivering spellbinding, up-to-the-minute reports about the finer intricacies of a coach's halftime speech, or interviewing B-list celebrities in attendance at a Yankees game, she's... well... just looking like Erin Andrews. Which, for most, is more than enough.

Her wide following of devoted fans, though, does include the occasional pervy stalker -- namely, one Michael David Barrett of Westmont, Illinois. Besides having the obligatory three-part name that has become the status quo of so many famous nutjobs throughout history, Barrett has also been charged with videotaping the reporter through a hotel room peephole while she was getting dressed and doing squat exercises. According to the Associated Press, prosecutors claim Barrett filmed the video with a cell phone camera after tinkering with hotel peep holes with a hacksaw (yes, a hacksaw). He then allegedly tried to sell the video to gossip site TMZ.

Barrett, who is also accused of having shot several peephole videos of other women (including at least seven more of Andrews), was released Monday on $4,500 bond, ordered to wear an ankle monitoring bracelet, given a strict curfew, and banned from using the Internet. Emphasizing that he did not want to "minimize the seriousness of what Mr. Barrett is charged with," U.S. Magistrate Judge Arlander Keys explained his decision to release Barrett ahead of his October 23rd court date by pointing out Barrett's good reputation in the community, squeaky clean criminal record, and no history of drug or alcohol abuse.

Regardless of whether or not he's in jail until his court date, we're pretty sure Barrett won't be doing a whole lot in his spare time anyway. And with no Internet? We shudder to think about what we would look like after even a week of disconnected existence. [From: AP/Huffington Post]

Tags: crime, erin andrews, erin andrews peephole, ErinAndrews, ErinAndrewsPeephole, espn, internet, sports, stalker, tv

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