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Nursing assistant charged with secretly videotaping three women

The nursing assistant accused of hiding a camera inside a staff bathroom at the Lahey Clinic in Burlington faced a judge on Tuesday.

Michael McDermott, 21 - who was set to graduate from nursing school this year - was working at the Lahey Clinic in March when police said he placed a camera disguised as a pen inside a locked bathroom.

The camera, disguised as a pen hidden inside an empty toilet paper roll, captured three partially nude women using the bathroom. A housekeeper at the clinic found the camera.

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According to police, McDermott is seen setting up the camera in one of the video clips.

"He placed a recording device in the bathroom where there are three victims who were photographed as a result of that," said Leigh Ann Johnson, the Assistant District Attorney.

Only our cameras were rolling inside the courtroom when McDermott's attorney, John Regan, said he was being treated for a mental health issue.

Regan said his client attempted suicide upon being confronted and charged with the crime, and was subsequently hospitalized for mental health issues.

Regan added that these accusations are completely out of character.

He is being charged with three counts of secretly videotaping a nude person and was released with several conditions, one of them being on GPS monitoring while his mental health assessment continues.

Prosecutors said McDermott has no prior criminal issues.

"This young man's history tells you that this is a one in a million occurrence and it will not occur again and he's in treatment," said Regan. "The diagnosis at this point is not clear yet, so I presume the most immediate product of the program will try to clarify what in fact happened."

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