A 48-year-old Tracy High School teacher was arrested Friday after students discovered a phone recording them while they changed in a campus locker room one day earlier, police said. Jeffrey Pribble was taken into custody and placed on administrative leave pending the investigation, according to authorities.
The discovery unfolded on September 10, when a student and classmates found the phone recording them inside the locker room, according to CBS News. The students stopped the recording, deleted the video, and gave the phone to a teacher, who alerted authorities. Police then responded to a parent's call about the device, and officers and detectives identified the phone as belonging to Pribble before arresting him the next day.
Tracy Police later issued a public statement, according to a Tracy Police Department statement. Officers and detectives investigated after the initial report from students and a parent.
Investigators Still Piecing Together the Case
The department's General Investigations Unit and School Resource Officers are continuing to investigate the incident, per the same statement, and anyone with information is urged to contact the police department. The investigation remains ongoing, and the available reports describe the recording students interrupted but do not detail other phone contents.
Tracy High Principal Jon Waggle sent a letter to parents addressing the incident, in which the school district said it is committed to holding its employees to the highest professional and ethical standards and is cooperating with law enforcement, per the principal's letter as reported by CBS News. Founded in 1917 as West Side Union High School, Tracy High serves roughly 1,739 students in grades 9 through 12 within the Tracy Joint Unified School District, according to Public School Review. The district as a whole operates three comprehensive high schools, two alternative high schools, and 13 elementary, middle, or K-8 schools, per Tracy Unified School District, serving approximately 16,000 students in the area.
What California Law Says About Locker Room Recordings
Under California Penal Code Section 647(j), secretly recording someone with a camera or phone in a changing room, locker room, or bathroom where there is a reasonable expectation of privacy is a misdemeanor invasion of privacy, punishable by up to six months in county jail and a $1,000 fine per violation, according to Eisner Gorin LLP. That penalty can escalate to a full year in jail and a $2,000 fine for subsequent offenses or when underage victims are involved, the firm notes.
State education law also shapes what happens next for Pribble's employment status. Under regulations expanded by Assembly Bill 872, certain sex offenses can trigger immediate teaching-credential suspension, while employees charged with a sex offense face expanded mandatory-leave requirements, according to Lozano Smith. The available sources do not describe any credential action involving Pribble, per the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.
The available sources do not detail the district's terms for placing certificated staff on administrative leave during misconduct investigations. A 2022 headline also described a Tracy high school teacher accused of an inappropriate relationship.
Other Recent Cases
The available sources do not establish a wider regional pattern of locker-room surveillance cases.
The investigation into Pribble remains active, and police have not indicated when it might conclude. For now, the case stands as another reminder to Tracy families that the district says it is cooperating fully with law enforcement while the inquiry plays out.
