California Indecent Exposure Laws

As previously stated, a threshold issue is the willful exposure of a person's private parts.

Furthermore, indecent exposure is a crime of specific intent. The defendant must have intended to act for a lewd or obscene purpose. The prosecutor can establish intent by showing:

• That the defendant intended to direct public attention to the defendant's genitals; or
• That the defendant wanted to achieve sexual arousal, sexual gratification, or sexual affront.

The defendant did not have to be completely naked or unclothed to be charged with indecent exposure; the prosecutor only needs to establish that the defendant's genitals were exposed.

California law also requires that the defendant acted in a public place. A public place might be a location in full view of people passing by. However, a private dwelling or inhabited building might also qualify as a public place for the purposes of indecent exposure if the defendant entered the premises without invitation or later provided the inhabitants with an unwanted display of the defendant's private parts.

• A first-time charge of indecent exposure may result in a misdemeanor conviction. If the defendant committed indecent exposure after entering a dwelling or the inhabited part of a building without the inhabitant's consent, the court may sentence the defendant to a term of imprisonment lasting up to one year. Imprisonment may take place in county jail or state prison.
• A second-time or subsequent conviction for indecent exposure, or a first-time conviction for indecent exposure after a conviction for another sex crime under California law, is a felony conviction. The felony conviction will likely result in a term of imprisonment in state prison. Felony indecent exposure also results in the requirement that the offender register with the Sex Offender Registry.