If you’re being charged with public indecency, you may wonder what the big deal is—perhaps you urinated in an alley after a night at the bars or mooned an old college friend as a joke, and you don’t believe that your actions should be considered a criminal offense. Unfortunately, the arresting officer probably didn’t see things this way, and you need to take any charge leveled against you very seriously.

Under Illinois state law 720 ILCS 5/11-30, public indecency is typically considered a misdemeanor. Most people convicted of this misdemeanor are not given a prison sentence, but they may have to register as a sex offender. Registering as a sex offender can have far-reaching, long-term effects, such as limiting housing options, making it difficult to find a job, and making it difficult to pursue a higher education degree. There is also the stigma associated with being a registered sex offender, which can weigh down on a person and damage their relationships with friends, neighbors, and families.

Fortunately, a public indecency charge does not automatically equal a public indecency conviction, and you may be able to get any charges against you dropped with a strong defense. Let’s take a look at some of the defenses you may be able to use. Remember, the defenses described below should not be misconstrued as legal advice, and you should not attempt to represent yourself in a trial when there’s so much at stake—you should instead work with a well-qualified public indecency lawyer.

Defining Public Indecency

To better understand some of the defenses used in public indecency cases, let’s first look at the definition of public indecency under Illinois state law. In our state, someone over the age of 17 can be charged with public indecency if they either commit an act of sexual conduct or lewdly expose their body with the intent to arouse or satisfy a sexual desire in a public place. For the purposes of the statute, “public place” is defined as “any place where the conduct may reasonably be expected to be viewed by others.”

Possible Defense: Space Should Not Be Considered Public

In some cases, a defense attorney may use the definition of a public place to argue that their client could not have reasonably expected their actions to be viewed by others. For example, if you were engaged in a lewd act inside your own car in a residential area, or if you ducked into an empty alley to urinate, you could reasonably expect not to be seen. You might be able to make the case that you were taking reasonable caution not to be seen, and the arresting officer was purposefully trying to “catch you in the act.”

Possible Defense: Exposure Was Not Intentional

Because public indecency involves “the intent to arouse or sexually satisfy,” some defendants may be able to argue that they did not intend to expose themselves to another person in a sexual way. For example, a person might forget to zip up their pants after leaving a public restroom, or might urinate on a fence in a park without realizing there were children nearby. In this type of situation, their attorney needs to prove what the defendant could reasonably be expected to know or not know. For example, if the defendant urinated in a park far away from a children’s play area, they might be able to prove they had no reason to believe there were children nearby.

Possible Defense: Police Violated the Defendant’s Rights

This defense does not relate to the act of public indecency itself, but rather to the conduct of the police. If the arresting officer asked leading questions, such as, “Why did you knowingly expose yourself in public?”, or if they failed to read you your Miranda Rights, a defense attorney could argue that any testimony you gave could not be used as evidence against you. An attorney might also argue that misconduct occurred if the police denied you counsel, meaning that you said you didn’t want to talk until a lawyer was present, but they continued questioning you anyways.

No matter what your specific situation, it’s best to cooperate with the police but politely refuse to answer questions until your lawyer is present. Contact a sex crimes defense attorney as soon as possible so that you can start building a strong defense and, ideally, get the charges dropped. You shouldn’t have to face a lifetime of being stigmatized and having limited opportunities due to a public indecency conviction.

About the Author: Andrew M. Weisberg is a former felony prosecutor who now serves as a defense attorney in the greater Chicago area. He has extensive experience in handling all types of criminal cases, from sex offenses and violent crimes to theft-related crimes and traffic violations.

Public indecency, or indecent exposure, has always been a somewhat nebulous charge. It’s classified as a sexual offense, which means that, if you’re charged with public indecency, you’ll be forced to register as a sex offender. The sex offender registry is public, and being a registered sex offender can affect everything from your ability to find housing to getting a job—a harsh penalty to pay for streaking, mooning, or urinating in public.

Public indecency charges get even more complicated when the person or persons in question are exposing their bodies to make an artistic statement. In Illinois and elsewhere around the country, public indecency is typically defined as a person “lewdly or intentionally exposing their body to others in a public place,” and it’s up to the court to look at the available evidence and determine whether the exposure was lewd or simply an artistic expression.

Several artists and musicians in recent years have faced public indecency or disorderly conduct charges while trying to make a statement, inspiring a discussion over when and if public nudity is ever acceptable in the progress.

Erykah Badu, Matt & Kim Publicly Strip for Music Videos

Back in 2010, singer-songwriter Erykah Badu made headlines after stripping in front of the site of JFK’s assassination for a one-take music video. During the filming, Ms. Badu, who claims the music video is meant to make a statement about protest and self-liberation, removes her clothing as she walks by onlookers – including minors – in Dealey Plaza. In the wake of the incident, the Dallas police considered charging Badu with an indecent exposure misdemeanor, which could have resulted in a fine of $4,000 and up to one year in jail.

Dallas police’s Senior Corporal Janie Crowther said that Badu would not be charged with any wrongdoing unless a witness came forward to complain about the event. However, one witness did come forward, and Badu was eventually charged with disorderly conduct. Because she was charged with the misdemeanor offense of disorderly conduct instead of public indecency, Badu was able to avoid registering as a sex offender, instead paying a $500 fine and going through six months of probation.

While Badu was not able to avoid criminal charges altogether, indie rock duo Matt & Kim were more successful in steering clear of legal consequences when filming their “Lessons Learned” music video in 2009. The pair gradually stripped off all their clothes as they walked past onlookers in the middle of Times Square, and at one point in the one-take video, a police officer attempted to tackle Kim Schifino. However, the two were not charged with public indecency because they had a lease permit to film a web promo in Times Square (even though the pitch they used for the permit was simply “Tourists walk through Times Square inappropriately dressed for the weather”).

Although these two music video incidences were similar in that they both involved public nudity in front of onlookers (including minors), the legal consequences (or lack thereof) differed largely because of a technicality. Erykah Badu did not have a permit to film her music video, while Matt & Kim did, even if the permit did not explicitly give them permission to strip in a public place.

Clearly, not every public indecency case involving an artistic statement is going to have the same outcome, and there are going to be gray areas when deciding the case. If you are an artist who is charged with public indecency, the best thing you can do is retain an experienced defense attorney to argue that your public statement does not warrant a criminal conviction.

About the Author: Andrew M. Weisberg is a former felony prosecutor who now serves as a defense attorney in the greater Chicago area for the Law Offices of Andrew Weisberg. He has extensive experience in handling all types of criminal cases, from sex offenses and violent crimes to theft-related crimes and traffic violations.