SARASOTA, Fla. — State prosecutors declined to charge Christian Ziegler, the former chair of Florida's Republican Party, with video voyeurism over allegations that he recorded a sexual encounter with a woman without her consent, according to the State Attorney's Office.
Prosecutors cited "insufficient evidence to prove" the charge, which was recommended by the Sarasota Police Department following a sexual battery investigation. SPD opened the case after a woman told them Ziegler showed up at her apartment in October 2023 and raped her.
Investigators said Ziegler admitted he recorded the sexual encounter, prompting SPD to ask the state attorney to look into pursuing a video voyeurism charge given that the woman said she was too intoxicated at the time to consent.
"The Victim's expressed inability to recall whether she consented to recording the sexual activity along with her inconsistencies pertaining to key details of the event leave the State unable to demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that the video in question was filmed without her knowledge or consent," the State Attorney's Office said. "Accordingly, no charges will be filed."
The memo was signed by S. Ethan Dunn, an assistant state attorney; Kate Metz, an assistant state attorney; and Brian Chambers, an assistant state attorney division chief.
From day one, Ziegler's attorney Derek Byrd said in a statement that his client was innocent. The full statement reads:
"Mr. Ziegler is relieved to finally be completely cleared of the false allegations and any criminal wrongdoing. We cooperated at every stage of investigation and as difficult as it was, we remained quiet out of respect for the investigation. On day one, we said that Mr. Ziegler was completely innocent.
"We asked everyone not to rush to judgement and reminded everyone to presume Mr. Ziegler innocent - as the Constitution instructs. Unfortunately, many did not award that courtesy to Mr. Ziegler, damaging his family, career, and reputation throughout this process."
The state's top prosecuting agency went on to say that the victim told investigators she did not remember consenting to the video being taken, but that it was "possible she could have consented to one being taken."
The video found on Ziegler's phone, which depicted the sexual encounter, did not capture any explicit statements of the victim consenting to the recording, according to the State Attorney's Office. Ziegler reportedly told police during an interview that he had spoken with the victim about taking a video of them having sex to show his wife, Bridget Ziegler, who is on the Sarasota County School Board and a co-founder of the conservative political group Moms for Liberty.
Ultimately, prosecutors said the victim was "simply unable to recall" whether she consented to the video being taken.
"Inconsistencies in the Victim's account appear to be the result of substantial intoxication and trauma the Victim was experiencing, which is corroborated by the accounts of those who interacted and spoke with her in the immediate aftermath of the sexual encounter," the State Attorney's Office said.
The agency also clarified there is no evidence indicating the victim held any bias toward Ziegler, and that she made no attempts to substantially change her recounting of the incident and did not try to convince law enforcement to file charges.
During the initial investigation, Sarasota police were looking into sexual battery charges against Ziegler, but after examining the video of the encounter, determined it was "likely consensual."
On Oct. 4, 2023, officers performed a wellness check at the victim's home, where she told them she had been raped by Ziegler. According to police reports, Ziegler wanted to have a threesome with the victim and his wife, Bridget. The victim said she initially agreed, but later told Ziegler she was not interested after he said his wife would not participate. She told police he showed up at her home anyway.
Police said the victim had been friends with the Zieglers for many years and had previously had a sexual relationship with the couple. Investigators said Bridget Ziegler confirmed the three had a sexual encounter roughly a year before the incident, but told police she had no knowledge of the plans her husband communicated to the victim about a threesome in 2023.