Leon Walker, the Michigan man who may serve time behind bars for reading his now-ex-wife Clara's email as a means of exposing her extra-marital affair, appeared on the Today show this morning.
In the segment, Walker--Clara's third husband--explained why he opted to use his wife's password to break into her Gmail account on their shared computer, a move that revealed she was having an affair with her second husband, whom Walker knew to be abusive:
"I felt with the risk to my daughter and to my stepson, I had an obligation to check. I had no choice. In doing so...I confirmed everything that I was concerned about, and then some."
Walker claims she kept her passwords on a piece of paper beside the computer, and he was well within his rights to log into her account. Prosecutors have a different take: they say Walker's spying took place months after she filed for divorce, which was granted this month. What's more, Walker's ex testified that he had installed a device on their computer to keep track of her email activity.
Walker is charged with felony computer misuse--an anti-hacking law traditionally used to prosecute identity theft and stealing trade secrets--and faces up to 5 years in prison if convicted.
WATCH:
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy