Last Friday, Rabbi Barry Freundel, 63, charged with misdemeanor voyeurism went to D.C. Superior Court to face his charges, and was faced with demonstrators carrying signs that read “#SAFEMIKVEH” and “#NoPleaDeal.”
One protestor was a woman who was in the process of converting and was asked to take a practice dunk. “I’m concerned I was one of the victims, and I’m no longer in the Orthodox conversion process,” she said. “It was so shocking.”
Prosecutors have asked for additional time to find more victims. A civil class action suit was filed on behalf of 100 women who believe they were secretly recorded. Freundel and all the lawyers will be back in court on Feb. 19.
“I can confirm that the women that we represent have been videotaped. Their space was invaded by the rabbi at a time that was a particularly solemn moment where they were communing with God,” said Ira Sherman, one of the lawyers involved in the case.