A Gillette man is guilty of exposing his bare genitalia to a 5-year-old boy in the local Walmart bathroom, a jury determined after a three-day trial.
James Todd, 55, could face between five and 12 years in prison at his sentencing, which will happen at a later date. Though he’d been out on bond when he walked into his trial, Todd was taken into custody when the jury convicted him Thursday.
His attorney William Appleton asked the case judge, retired District Court Judge Thomas Campbell, to grant Todd a post-conviction bond so the man could stay out of jail while awaiting his sentencing hearing. Those hearings usually happen months after a verdict, as judges have probation and parole personnel compile an investigation of each defendant beforehand.
Campbell has not yet ruled on whether Todd can stay out of jail for the next few weeks, Todd’s court file indicates.
Appleton noted in his written request that the case prosecutor, Campbell County Deputy Attorney Sara Lock, is building a response to that request. He did not immediately respond to an email request for additional comment.
Todd was charged May 31 of last year with one count of attempted sexual exploitation of a child, which is a felony.
Into The Bathroom
In an evidentiary affidavit, Gillette Police Department Detective Nicole Hahn related a woman’s report that a man had approached her son in the men’s bathroom at the Gillette Walmart store on Feb. 28, 2024.
The boy was about 5 years old at that time.
His mother brought him to the store to buy “stuff,” the boy later told a child forensic interviewer in Rapid City, South Dakota.
He needed to use the bathroom and went into the one in the back of the store. While he was washing his hands, a man walked out of a stall, pulled his pants down to expose his genitalia and asked if the boy wanted to “touch his wiener,” the affidavit relates from the boy’s forensic interview.
The boy said no, washed his hands and left the bathroom to tell his mom, says the document.
The affidavit says the boy noted that a male Walmart employee was also in the bathroom at the time. When police identified and contacted the Walmart worker, he said he wasn’t paying close attention, but did notice that both the man and the boy were at the urinals at the same time.
Story Changes
The suspect, later identified as Todd, gave Gillette police a different account.
He said he’d just gotten off work and needed to buy a space heater at Walmart since his home heater had quit working, but he hadn’t had the opportunity to urinate since leaving work and struggles with urgency due to a bowel surgery from three years prior, the document says.
He had to go “immediately” once in the bathroom, and he didn’t know anyone was in there, Todd reportedly told police.
Then he saw a young child standing at one of the urinals, and Todd took his penis out of his pants. Still exposed, he started walking toward a stall to urinate, but noticed the stalls were too dirty to use, the affidavit relates from Todd’s interview.
So, still exposed and holding his penis, he turned back to the urinals and said, “How’s it going?” to the child, and urinated in a urinal, Todd reportedly told police.
Then he zipped up his pants and walked out of the restroom, he added.
The child’s mother confronted him a short while later, but Todd denied trying to coerce the child into a sex act.
The investigator asked Todd why he’d be walking around the bathroom exposed. Todd said he didn’t want to urinate in his pants, reportedly.
The investigator then asked why Todd had tried to use a stall anyway, and Todd answered, “because of things like this,” meaning that children won’t make up stories about him being inappropriate toward them.
The investigator asked if a child had ever made up such a story about him, and Todd said no, but it had happened to his friends, and he himself had made up such a story as a child, the affidavit says.
Todd believed the child saw his genitalia exposed, but reportedly said the child’s claim of an inappropriate offer was just an attempt to get attention.
Surveillance Video
Walmart gave police surveillance video capturing the area outside the bathroom, the document says.
The video shows the boy walking into the bathroom while his mother waits beyond the door. A few minutes later the Walmart employee enters, then the employee leaves the bathroom. After that, the boy leaves the bathroom with his head down and appears as if trying to tell his mother something, the affidavit says.
Todd then leaves the bathroom with his head down and walks quickly away from both mother and son, reportedly.
Todd never bought a space heater or ventured toward that part of the store, the document relates from the surveillance video.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
