public urination (appointed, sex offenders, crime)

[billyy]

I'm from mass and i got charged with open and gross lewdness and lascivious behavior for taking a pee outside. Are there any cops or prosecutors on here that can tell me if like the cops charged me wrong and if the courts will take this very seriously. I'm 22 years old and i was just pretty drunk.

[LeavingMA]

You can actually get put on the sex offender list for this, so that should be your main concern.

I find it kind of interesting if you have to go the bathroom and your driving down the highway, so you run into the woods and if you get caught you could be put on the sex offender list. The fact you tried to be discreet about it should show your not a sex offender.

In your case you were drunk though, so not sure what will happen.

[CaseyB]

If you haven't already done so, your best bet at this point is to contact an attorney and see if he or she can get the charge reduced to something else. LeavingMa is right, you can be required to register as a sex offender. If you don't know a criminal defense attorney, you can call your county bar association and they will give you some names. Good luck.

[mommytotwo]

Next time, **** in your car in an empty gatorade bottle.

Sex offender list? that is insane but I believe it. You better get a lawyer...... You DON'T want ot be on that list.

so where were you peeing, anyway?

[smarty]

The crime is only a level 1 offender... they do not need to be registered...


There are 3 Levels of Sex Offenders in Massachusetts
Level 1 Sex Offenders

Where the Sex Offender Registry Board determines that the risk of reoffense by an offender is low and the degree of dangerousness posed to the public by that offender is not such that a public safety interest is served by public availability, the Board shall give that offender a Level 1 designation. Information on Level 1 offenders will not be available to the public. Neither the police nor the Board have authority to disseminate information to the general public identifying a Level 1 offender. Information identifying Level 1 offenders may only be given to the department of correction, any county correctional facility, the department of youth services, the department of social services, the parole Board, the department of probation and the department of mental health, all city and town police departments and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for law enforcement purposes.

Level 2 Sex Offenders

Where the Board determines that the risk of reoffense is moderate and the degree of dangerousness posed to the public is such that a public safety interest is served by public availability of registration information, it shall give a level 2 designation to the sex offender.

The public shall have access to the information regarding a level 2 offender through the Local Police Department and through the Sex Offender Registry Board.

Level 3 Sex Offenders

Where the Board determines that the risk of reoffense is high and the degree of dangerousness posed to the public is such that a substantial public safety interest is served by active dissemination, it shall give a level 3 designation to the sex offender.

The public shall have access to the information regarding a level 3 offender through the Local Police Departments and through the Sex Offender Registry Board .

[goyguy]

Taking your "thing" out in public is automatically indecent exposure, m'friend. It doesn't matter if you were being a flasher, consummating marriage - or fooling around with someone you just met - in a back seat, or answering the call of nature. Your case will be stronger if you were whizzing in an alley behind a trash barrel than it'll be if you were standing in a parking lot or along a sidewalk. What will also make a difference is how you were busted. Did a cop see you himself or herself? Did a "friend" summon the authorities? Or did a group of female college students, feigning great shock and disgust, scream for help?

Regardless, you definitely should be seeking legal counsel, ideally with the help of your parents or an older friend. Don't approach anyone at your job for assistance, for obvious reasons. Court-appointed lawyers are usually a safe bet, but they don't know you and are interested only in getting through their caseload. If you don't succeed in getting the charges dropped, plead "guilty" or "no contest." As long as you had a clean record before this, the most likely result will be a small fine and no jail time at worst. And the judge may well "continue without a finding," which means that if you go for a set period of time - usually six months to two years - without getting arrested the charges will be dropped.

The best thousand bucks I ever spent went toward getting a savvy attorney to succeed in getting a selectively-enforced trespassing charge against me dropped. Nobody with any self-respect wants a rap sheet. Good luck to you.