Orange County prosecutors arrested former California State Parks Superintendent Kevin Pearsall, 59, over allegations he secretly recorded nearly two dozen men in a Huntington Beach lifeguard locker room for 11 months starting in late August 2019. He faces felo
By the time Kevin Pearsall turned himself in, the warrant had already been issued for the arrest of a man who once oversaw the day-to-day management of California’s state parks in the Orange Coast District.
Orange County prosecutors say Pearsall. 59. of Long Beach. was arrested and charged after allegations that he secretly recorded nearly two dozen men inside an employee locker room at a state beach in Huntington Beach. He is facing five felony counts of eavesdropping. 23 misdemeanor counts of secretly filming. and three misdemeanor counts of unlawful dissemination of private recordings.
Pearsall turned himself in to authorities amid a $500,000 arrest warrant Tuesday, and was released on his own recognizance.
At least one victim—an unnamed sworn lifeguard officer—has filed a civil lawsuit against Pearsall and the California Department of State Parks. The lawsuit alleges sexual harassment, hostile work environment, and failure to prevent the illegal behavior. It seeks unspecified general damages for emotional distress and punitive damages.
The recordings, prosecutors say, took place at the Bolsa Chica State Beach Lifeguard Headquarters for 11 months starting August 24. The civil lawsuit alleges the cameras may have been installed as far back as 2019, capturing images of seasonal lifeguards, including teens as young as 15.
Authorities said the locker room is accessible only to full-time personnel, seasonal lifeguards, office staff, maintenance and park aides—meaning the people who enter do so as part of their workday. The allegations describe the space as one where privacy was supposed to be expected.
The case came into view last July when a California state officer discovered a USB camera inside the men’s employee locker room and notified the California Highway Patrol, which launched a probe, prosecutors said.
During the investigation. state investigators alleged that Pearsall placed hidden cameras in the men’s locker room. recording mostly male lifeguards and other workers changing clothes. Prosecutors said they identified at least 23 men who unknowingly had their genitals or buttocks filmed by the hidden camera placed in the locker room.
Prosecutors further accused Pearsall of sending several photographs—described in the charges as images of nude or partially nude men in the locker room—to two men, while also making sexually charged comments about his employees’ genitals.
“Instead of protecting his employees. Pearsall used his position to spy on the men who worked for him while they were in the place where they should have been the safest and then share those intimate images of his victims. ” Orange County Dist. Atty. Todd Spitzer said. “These victims had their privacy violated in such a disgusting way. and we will do everything we can to ensure they receive the justice they deserve.”.
Pearsall served as a California State Parks Superintendent from 2023 to 2025. Prosecutors said he was placed on administrative leave while under investigation. He was overseeing the management and operations of state parks in the Orange Coast District, including those in Orange County.
The civil lawsuit portrays a workplace where the harm continued after the discovery—and where the chain of command may have helped create the conditions for it.
Ron Zambrano. an attorney who filed the civil lawsuit on behalf of his unnamed client. alleged in the suit that Pearsall encouraged his client and other victims to change in a portion of the building known as the “back lockers. ” where they would have more privacy—unaware that hidden cameras were installed there. Zambrano said Pearsall “took advantage of his position to subject my client to appalling voyeurism because California State Parks did not adequately look into red flags indicating he was a problem supervisor. ” according to a news release.
Zambrano also alleged that employees believed Pearsall had been the subject of other investigations into alleged embezzlement. In that telling, the raid at the Bolsa Chica Lifeguard Headquarters in July became entangled in rumors because investigators seized computers, the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit says it took months for Zambrano’s client to learn the raid was actually part of an investigation into alleged hidden cameras. It also says that earlier this year, the victim was told he was among those who were secretly recorded.
“For the first six months after being identified as a victim, plaintiff received virtually no communication or support from Internal Affairs or other investigative units, allowing damaging rumors about embezzlement and hidden cameras to fester at work,” the lawsuit alleged.
None of that detail appears to hinge on what was done in private—it hinges on what was supposed to prevent it. With Pearsall facing felony eavesdropping and multiple misdemeanor counts tied to secretly filming and alleged distribution. and with a civil suit describing alleged harassment and workplace failures. the allegations now land on an uncomfortable question for employees: how many people were left unprotected. and for how long?.
Kevin Pearsall California State Parks Huntington Beach Bolsa Chica lifeguard locker room hidden cameras eavesdropping charges civil lawsuit Todd Spitzer USB camera