Ryan Davis pleads not guilty to multiple charges
Accused of hiding in restroom to spy on women
Photo by Michael Kelly Ryan Davis, right, stands with his attorney Ray Smith as Washington County Common Pleas Judge Mark Kerenyi reads charges from a seven-count indictment at an arraignment Thursday morning in Washington County Common Pleas Court.
MARIETTA — A man charged with voyeurism, burglary, assault, possession of a concealed weapon and intimidation in a seven-count indictment entered a plea of not guilty on all charges Thursday morning at an arraignment in Washington County Common Pleas Court.
Ryan Andrew Davis, 34, is accused of hiding in women’s restrooms in public places on two occasions for, in the wording of the indictment, “the purpose of sexually arousing or gratifying himself.” The incidents are alleged to have occurred Dec. 17 at the Lafayette Hotel and Jan. 9 in the Marietta City Water Department offices on Putnam Street.
Davis was alleged to have a concealed weapon that was not a handgun — a box cutter — when he was arrested Jan. 9.
He was convicted on similar charges in 2010 for watching women in a bathroom in the Washington County Courthouse and was charged in 2015 with hiding in a women’s bathroom in the dining hall at Marietta College.
According to a Marietta Police Department incident report, in the recent case, officers were investigating a criminal trespass complaint at the water department and found Davis hiding in the women’s room in an area restricted to employees.
“When officers called out for Davis, he pretended to use a female’s voice and stated his name was Katie,” the report stated. When “a female officer made contact with Davis and he provided identification … he became extremely angry and was placed under arrest,” the report said.
“Davis has previously been advised by law enforcement not to return to the water department,” the report noted.
The report related to the Lafayette incident said police were called to the hotel to check a complaint that a man was in the women’s restroom. Police reviewed security camera footage and saw someone resembling Davis leaving the women’s room.
Officers went to Davis’s address and asked him about the allegation, and he said he had been in the women’s room by mistake, the report said. He was arrested for parole violation.
Davis has a previous conviction for gross sexual imposition dating back to 2004 in Washington County, which makes possession of a concealed weapon a felony. The 2004 case involved the fondling of an 11-year-old boy. Davis served five years in prison for that charge and for an arson conviction, stemming from a fire he set in his jail cell.
The indictment also alleges Davis threatened a witness at the Washington County Jail on Feb. 7.
Although Davis through his attorney, Ray Smith, waived reading of the two-page indictment, it took Washington County Common Pleas Judge Mark Kerenyi several minutes to read through the charges and penalty ranges as Davis responded to each.
* Count 1, burglary: Second-degree felony, up to eight years and a fine of $15,000
* Count 2, voyeurism: Third-degree misdemeanor, up to 60 days and $500
* Count 3, carrying a concealed weapon: Third-degree felony, 18 months, $5,000
* Count 4, aggravated burglary: First-degree felony, 11 years, $20,000
* Count 5, assault: Fifth-degree felony, 12 months, $2,500
* Count 6, intimidation: Third-degree felony, 36 months, $10,000
* Count 7, burglary: Third-degree felony, 36 months, $10,000
Smith said he had filed a motion to combine counts number 4 and 7.
Washington County Assistant Prosecutor Alison Cauthorn noted that Davis had been on post-control release, and Kerenyi informed Davis that such a violation carried a 12-month sentence that would run consecutively with any other terms of imprisonment imposed if he is found guilty.
“The defendant has a significant criminal history and … is a significant risk to the community,” Cauthorn said and requested cash $500,000 bail, with any personal recognizance, should Davis make bail, conditional on a mental health evaluation.
Kerenyi agreed with the bail request and set a pre-trial hearing for April 26, final pretrial for June 6 and a jury trial for July 9.
Smith told the court he would file a suggestion of incompetence, not guilty by reason of insanity.


