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Criminal charges

indecent exposure

A person commits the crime of indecent exposure by exposing the person’s body or private parts (usually genitals, anus, buttocks, or female breasts) in a public place and in the presence of another person who might be offended, alarmed, or annoyed. Laws vary from state to state—including definitions of exposed body parts—and some states require the exposure to have been made with the intent to attract attention or to sexually gratify the person making the indecent exposure, or to sexually gratify another person, or to offend another person.

Indecent exposure laws are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code.

In Arizona, indecent exposure is defined under Arizona Revised Statutes § 13-1402. A person commits indecent exposure if they expose their genitals or anus or, in the case of a woman, her areola or nipple, with the intent to offend or alarm another person who is present. This law applies when the person exposed knows or should know that the act is likely to offend, alarm, or annoy some other person. Indecent exposure is classified as a Class 1 misdemeanor unless the victim is under 15 years of age, in which case it is classified as a Class 6 felony. The intent to sexually gratify oneself is not a required element for the crime of indecent exposure in Arizona, unlike in some other states. However, the presence of another person who may be offended or alarmed by the exposure is a necessary component of the crime.

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Criminal charges

indecent exposure

Individual & Family Legal Plan

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Arizona State Code

Arizona State Code

Criminal charges

indecent exposure

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