BLUE MOUNTAIN – Misdemeanor charges of stalking and indecent exposure have been filed against a Potts Camp man in Blue Mountain Municipal Court, Police Chief Billy Johnson said this week.

The charges follow months of complaints from town residents that a man was stalking underage girls, and later women, and had in several instances exposed himself to them, Chief Johnson said.

Keith L. Traylor, 31, is free on $5,000 bond -- $1,000 per charge -- after warrants were served against him Monday at his residence, with help from the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department, alleging three counts of indecent exposure and two counts of stalking, according to court records.

He faces a Thursday, Aug. 19 court date on the charges, records indicated.

Traylor is accused of stalking -- defined as disturbing or harassing someone or giving them unwanted attention -- and exposing himself to girls and women at the walking track, the town library, in front of a store, and in front of two juveniles’ homes.

He is believed to have followed girls home to find out where they lived, then returning in the early morning hours to watch as they boarded buses to take them to school.

“At first, the complaints involved young girls ages 13-16, but as time has gone on, the complaints have come to include adults,” Johnson said.

He said he got a break in the case after a town-installed video surveillance system at the park placed Traylor at the scene engaging in inappropriate behavior. He also got a call from a woman at the park who told him she had seen something suspicious.

“No one got a tag number because the youngsters were more worried about getting away. If anyone approached him, he would quickly drive away in the vehicle before they got close enough to get a tag number. However, a concerned citizen finally got the number and gave it to me. By that time, I had a vehicle description, and the tag number let me get warrants in the case.

“It’s been an aggravating case because there was no pattern. I’d get a complaint, and by the time I got there, the man was gone. Then for months, nothing. There was no way to tell when or where this person would strike again.

“A lot of parents thought I wasn’t doing anything. I’ve been doing all I can, but I’ve taken a lot of heat on this case,” Johnson said.

The maximum penalty upon conviction for stalking is $1,000 and /or one year in jail; indecent exposure is $500/ and/or six months.

It is not the first time Johnson has encountered Traylor. The officer said he arrested Traylor on an indecent exposure charge in 2002 when Johnson was a Tippah deputy. Traylor was later found guilty in Tippah County Justice Court. Traylor was also found guilty in Tippah County Justice Court in 2003 of indecent exposure.

Those cases, and the current charges, are misdemeanors, which means Traylor can’t be placed on a sex offender list. The Attorney General’s office is monitoring the current case, Chief Johnson said.

The chief said he wants to see Traylor get help, both for the good of the community, and for Traylor’s own safety. “ If some of these parents get hold of him, there could be serious problems,” Johnson concluded.