The open-and-shut case against former Thatcher art teacher Stephen Hume slowly began to unravel as he meekly proclaimed at his hearing Tuesday his guilt to six counts of attempted voyeurism.

Judge R. Douglas Holt appeared disturbed by parts of the plea agreement and Hume’s seeming inability to admit to what he had done.

Holt first questioned if there were any memory cards that could have images or video Hume captured while filming students changing clothes for art projects. Deputy County Attorney C. Alan Perkins said part of the reason the state was going after Hume on attempted voyeurism charges only was that there was only one memory card, which was destroyed during the course of the investigation.

According to Thatcher Police reports, when police first approached Hume at the high school, he was allowed to retrieve the camera from his truck and give it to them before following officers to the police station.

In a subsequent interview, Hume admitted to police he had taken the memory card out before handing the camera over and had bent it and thrown it out the window while driving to the police station. Officers later found parts of the destroyed memory card, and information could not be retrieved.

Holt then questioned a part of the plea agreement that said the state would not pursue any other charges relating to incidents that occurred while he was a teacher at Thatcher High School.

Perkins said a thorough investigation concluded no other evidence of impropriety on the part of Hume during his tenure at the school was found, and the state does not believe any video or pictures Hume took without the students’ knowledge exists anymore.

Holt asked if, hypothetically, pictures of the students were to appear on the Internet five years from now, would the state, because of its plea offer, not be able to prosecute Hume. Perkins said that could be a remote possibility.

Holt also stated that, if he accepts the plea, Hume will receive probation for three years and possibly be sentenced to no more than one year in jail.

Holt agreed there is a legal and technical possibility that, because Hume is pleading guilty to multiple counts that carry a year each, a court could sentence him to serve the counts consecutively. He said, however, that he would only send him to jail on one count.

“I’ve never stacked concurrent terms as consecutive terms in jail in the last nine years, and I don’t suspect I’ll start with Mr. Hume,” he said.

Holt added that if Hume violates his probation, he could then go to prison for a presumptive six years.

Hume agreed with all the terms and then was asked to admit to what he had done.

Hume’s admission sounded more like a defense as he stated he had accidentally caught one girl on film changing and then threw away the memory card.

Hume’s own attorney, Wendell Hughes, called the statement “clearly inadequate.”

Holt asked Hume if he had downloaded any images of the girls onto any computer, to which Hume replied, “I don’t think so.”

Holt said he was not satisfied with what Hume had told him.

He read the statute Hume was pleading guilty to and asked him if he meant to capture images of girls changing their clothes at Thatcher High School.

“Did you intend to take photographs of girls at Thatcher High School, without them knowing about it, in a state of undress or partial dress for your sexual stimulation?” Holt asked. “Yes or no?”

“Yes sir,” Hume replied.

Hume then pleaded guilty to six counts of attempted voyeurism, one count for each victim.

Holt said he will defer accepting the guilty plea until sentencing or the preparation of a pre-sentence report.

He set Hume’s sentencing date for Monday, May 5, at 11 a.m.