In Michigan, the same law governs both indecent exposure and aggravated indecent exposure. Indecent exposure is more like “flashing.” An exposure is “aggravated” if a person is seen fondling or touching his (or her) genitals.
THE LAW
The aggravated charge carries more serious potential penalties, It can be seen in section “b” of the law, reprinted below:
750.335a Indecent exposure; violation; penalty; mother’s breastfeeding or expressing milk exempt.
(1) A person shall not knowingly make any open or indecent exposure of his or her person or of the person of another.
(2) A person who violates subsection (1) is guilty of a crime, as follows:
(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b) or (c), the person is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 1 year, or a fine of not more than $1,000.00, or both.
(b) If the person was fondling his or her genitals, pubic area, buttocks, or, if the person is female, breasts, while violating subsection (1), the person is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 2 years or a fine of not more than $2,000.00, or both.
(c) If the person was at the time of the violation a sexually delinquent person, the violation is punishable by imprisonment for an indeterminate term, the minimum of which is 1 day and the maximum of which is life.
(3) A mother’s breastfeeding of a child or expressing breast milk does not constitute indecent or obscene conduct under subsection (1) regardless of whether or not her areola or nipple is visible during or incidental to the breastfeeding or expressing of breast milk.
In the past, Judges basically had primary resource to deal with Indecent exposure cases – jail. Nowadays, they have an entire range of alternative. Most are counseling and treatment-related options. These are used to address whatever underlying issues may have given rise or contributed to a person having acted out.
THE BIG CONCERN
Indecent exposure and aggravated indecent exposure cases always raise concerns about sexual deviancy and the threat of what’s called progression. As the term implies, progression occurs when a person continues to engage in progressively more serious sex-related offenses
First, let’s note that the overwhelming majority of people who commit an indecent exposure or aggravated indecent exposure offense are men. Only a tiny minority of them are any kind of sexual deviant. Our firm’s typical client doesn’t pose any risk to re-offend or progress to more serious and/or predatory sex crimes.
In fact, most of them are really nice guys who just “acted out” and then feel horrible about it.
However, it is also true that a significant percentage of serious sex criminals did start out small. These guys progressed from less serious offenses, like indecent exposure, into more dangerous and severe crimes. Those can include things like secretly filming women in changing rooms, all the way to outright sexual assaults.
It’s at this point, almost every guy will say, “MAYBE SO, BUT NOT ME!” And while that may be true, the question becomes – how is the court supposed to know that?
The simple answer is that it tries to find out through psychological screening.
WE PROVIDE UNSURPASSED HELP
My team and I know exactly what to do. When you’re facing an indecent exposure charge, you basically have 2 choices.
1. You can be carried away by the current and “go with the flow.” This means you HOPE that the court sends you to a counselor who won’t string you along forever. In this scenario, your best outcome is being sent to someone who really knows what they’re doing.
2. You can be proactive, and take advantage of the resources we have. We will show the court that you’re NOT at risk to progress and/or become a predator.
We need to convince the Judge that your Indecent exposure incident really is a true “one and done” event. We’ll do that by using a highly experienced professional counselor who specializes in criminal sexual behavior.
The right counselor for an indecent exposure case can’t just be someone nice, who is well-meaning. He or she must regularly assess and treat people with sexual deviances who go on to commit sex crimes. Such experience is necessary to show that you are NOT at risk to progress. This is how we persuade the Judge that you’re not someone who will become a sexual predator.
Our firm uses specialists with thousands of professional hours handling these cases. They will make clear that your Indecent exposure incident is NOT the symptom of some underlying tendency to progress. We will show that you’re not a risk to reoffend, or otherwise become a sexual predator.
This is huge, because Judges will always take a “better safe than sorry” approach. The big risk for anyone facing an indecent exposure or aggravated indecent exposure charge isn’t going to jail. It’s getting hammered with expensive and long-term counseling.
THE COURT’S ROLE
The court will look to use whatever measures are best to curb such behavior. Jail doesn’t really offer any benefit in that regard. In other words, even though most people facing an indecent exposure charge are thinking about jail, most Judges aren’t.
Instead, they’re trying to figure out how to “fix” a person so he won’t do it again. If that means sending someone to unnecessary counseling, or more of it than was needed, they’re not going to lose any sleep over it.
Remember, better safe than sorry…
My team and I will do what’s necessary to make sure you don’t get shoved into any kind of difficult treatment you don’t need. This requires a lot of interaction between the lawyer, the client, and the specialized counselor. We’ll put together a smart plan, based on experience, to minimize all the potential legal penalties and negative consequences you face.
SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION
One of the most common questions we answer is whether or not a person facing an indecent exposure or aggravated indecent exposure charge is going to have to register as a sex offender.
Neither indecent exposure nor aggravated indecent exposure requires sex offender registration.
HOWEVER, there is an exception if a victim (in indecent exposure cases, this would be someone who saw the exposure) is a minor. In that circumstance, registration is required.
There is also a registration requirement if the person who commits an act of indecent exposure was a sexually delinquent person. Generally speaking, a sexually delinquent person is someone with a horrible prior record for sex crimes.
The bottom line is that you won’t be put on the Michigan Sex Offender Registry for either a simple indecent exposure charge or an aggravated indecent exposure charge that doesn’t involve a victim who is a minor, or if you weren’t otherwise a sexually delinquent person at the time you were seen.
RESULTS
At the end of the day, what matters most is what happens to you. My team and I have NEVER had a client charged with only indecent exposure or aggravated indecent exposure get sent to jail. We keep our clients our of jail. That’s easy for us. It’s avoiding burdensome and ongoing counseling that takes effort.
We’ll do that by formulating and following an intelligent and proactive defense strategy.
The goal for anyone dealing with an indecent exposure charge is to get out of it with the fewest legal penalties and negative consequences possible. No matter how you cut it, success in an indecent exposure case is best defined by what does NOT happen to you. If you are facing an indecent exposure or aggravated indecent exposure charge, you need the best legal help you can find.
We are those lawyers.
Don’t take our word for it, though. Call us, and then call around. The best thing you can do if you find yourself in this situation is to compare lawyers.
We encourage you to do that.
All of our consultations are free, confidential, and done over the phone, right when you call. We understand you feel embarrassed, but my team and I have handled so many indecent exposure cases that we know how to ease your fears and speak to you without judgment.
We are very friendly people who will be glad to answer your questions, explain things, and even compare notes with anything some other lawyer has told you. We can be reached Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., at either 248-986-9700, or 586-465-1980.
Our consultations are free and our cases are handled on a “flat-fee” basis with upfront fees!