Punitive and other damages will increase the total award against a peeping Aiken County landlord by 66%, The State newspaper of Columbia reported.
Jurors added an $18 million punitive damages award to a $27 million actual damages award against Rhett Riviere, 70, and his former spouse, Josee Riviere, after a recently married couple were taped having sex and using the bathroom in a cottage they rented from Rhett Riviere. The additional damages bring the total in the case to $45 million, almost all of which Rhett Riviere owes.
The seven-woman, five-man jury needed only 1½ hours Wednesday to add $10 million in punitive damages to the $27 million award, The State reported. Then under the state’s Unfair Trade Practices Act, Judge Martha Rivers added $8 million more in damages.
Plaintiffs Gabriel and Heather Crespo rented the Aiken cottage from Riviere in 2001; however, the structure was riddled with secret cameras he had installed. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division informed the couple of the cameras’ presence when the agency later began an investigation of Riviere.
Riviere also was an Airbnb landlord before the company cut ties with him in 2019.
Evidence in the case says that he made more than 20,000 videos of renters, The State reported.
In addition to the civil case, Riviere also faces three counts of voyeurism filed by SLED.
One of Riviere’s attorneys, Joe McCulloch, called the $45 million total verdict excessive. Riviere’s defense team is reviewing his options.
Said Deborah Barbier, the plaintiffs’ lead attorney: “Heather and Gabriel were incredibly brave to tell their story and be a voice to hold him accountable. They have sent a very clear message that this misconduct will not be tolerated.”
The claims in the Crespos’ lawsuit included invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress, unfair trade practices, negligence and voyeurism, The State reported.