Lansdale man with history of indecent exposure gets time served, probation for masturbating in front of neighbor

Jun 07, 2023

By Keith Heffintrayer | North Penn Now

A Lansdale man has been sentenced to time served and probation after he introduced himself to a new female neighbor last September, then began masturbating on his porch while staring in her direction.

William McGahan, 73, recently pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct and open lewdness, stemming from the incident on Jenkins Avenue in Lansdale. A third charge of indecent exposure was previously dismissed during McGahan’s preliminary hearing, court records show.

Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge Thomas Rogers sentenced McGahan to 84 days to 12 months in county jail, followed by one year of probation. Additional sentencing stipulations indicate McGahan will be under sex offender supervision while on probation, he must undergo a sex offender evaluation, avoid contact with the victim, and undergo a psycho-sexual evaluation and comply with all recommendations.

With credit for time served, McGahan was released following his sentencing.

Lansdale Borough Police were dispatched to a home on Jenkins Avenue on Sept. 21, 2022, for a report of a man masturbating in front of a residence. Police said they spoke with a woman who recently moved to the area, who stated McGahan — who lives across the street — went to her home to introduce himself and ask if she wanted to go to his residence to check out his massage chair.

The woman declined and went back inside her home, police said. When the woman went to leave her home a short time later, she saw McGahan standing on his front steps staring at her and masturbating, according to charging documents.

When interviewed by police, McGahan acknowledged that he invited the woman to his home to see his massage chair, but initially denied masturbating on his porch, police said. As the interview continued, McGahan allegedly admitted to something more happening, stating he “could have had a moment of weakness, but that it would not happen again,” according to the criminal complaint.

Court records show McGahan was arrested and arraigned the following morning by District Judge John Kessler, who set bail at $77, indicating a probation or parole detainer being filed.

In June 2018, McGahan was sentenced to 175 days of time served and probation after pleading guilty to an open lewdness charge. Prior to that, McGahan was also convicted on two other occasions of indecent exposure after allegedly masturbating next to his garage in 2016, according to MediaNews Group archives, and masturbating in a woman’s backyard in late 2015.

McGahan was also arrested in October 2015 for stalking a woman in Lansdale. Court records show he ultimately received five years’ probation after pleading guilty to the charge in December 2016.

Across all his cases, McGahan was always sentenced to time served while awaiting resolution and probation, aside from an additional 10 months in jail for a probation violation in 2018. Though multiple sentencing documents state McGahan undergo a psychosexual evaluation and sex offender supervision, there is no record that he was required to register as a sex offender in Pennsylvania.

This article appears courtesy of a content sharing agreement between North Penn Now and The Reporter. To read more stories like this, visit www.NorthPennNow.com.

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