Indecent exposure is a sexual offence under the Sexual Offences Act 2003. It is defined as the act of intentionally exposing one’s genitals to cause alarm or distress to another. As it is an act of ‘specific intent, it must be demonstrated that it was done intentionally. Therefore, indecent exposure cannot be committed accidentally under UK law. For instance, someone who was simply urinating, thus exposing his genitals, would not be charged with indecent exposure unless done so with malicious intent.
Example scenario of how one may find themselves in this situation:
A woman is walking on her way home and as she turns left onto her street, a man jumps in front of her and pulls down his trousers to flash his genitals at her. This causes both shock and distress to the woman who was not expecting this unsolicited encounter with the man.
In the example above, clear intent to cause harm to another by exposing one’s genitals can be deduced from the act of deliberately jumping in front of the victim and undressing. It also demonstrates why this offence is considered a sexual offence even without any direct physical contact.
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