Sex offender goes from probation to jail on appeal
20.05.12
It took a jury less than an hour to decide the guilt of a man accused of masturbating in a parking lot between two popular Gastonia businesses.
A jury found Robert Stephen Smith, 43, of Iron Station guilty of indecent exposure and resisting a public officer.
Superior Court Judge William Constangy sentenced Smith to 60 days in jail and two years of supervised probation. If Smith breaks any of his probation conditions, he will have to spend another 60 days in jail. Constangy ordered Smith to receive a mental health assessment at a local mental health provider within 14 days of being released from jail.
Gastonia Police arrested Smith in August 2010 after a florist at Roses and Bouquets Florist on East Franklin Boulevard called 911 to report a man touching himself in his pickup just before 10 a.m. The son of a Gastonia police officer also witnessed Smith touch himself.
Police say Smith left the parking area when a police officer pulled in behind him and an officer stopped him about a block away at another business on Avon Street.
Source: Gaston Gazette