People v. Dallas W.

Opinion

VOGEL (MIRIAM A.), J.

On a summer day, as 16-year-old Dallas W. and four friends walked along a public street in Artesia, Dallas twice stopped to moon oncoming traffic.

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Sean Warner, an employee of the City of Artesia, happened to be across the street. “[A]ngry and concerned for the safety of people in the street,” Warner called the police. When a deputy sheriff responded, Warner was quite “adamant that he wanted some action taken being that he was working for the City . . . .” Warner demanded that Dallas be detained and cited, which he was. Dallas was charged by petition (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 602) with misdemeanor indecent exposure (Pen. Code, § 314, subd. I),

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and an adjudication hearing was held. The juvenile court found this was “a mooning case,” and that Dallas had “exposed his buttocks . . . with the intent to annoy and affront people.” The court specifically found that Dallas did

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act with “sexual intent in the sense that he intended to arouse himself or a third person by his act. I think he did it strictly to annoy and to affront people.” The petition was nevertheless sustained, and Dallas was made a ward of the court. He appeals. Because the court found Dallas acted without any sexual intent, we reverse.

[939]

Discussion

Dallas contends the evidence is insufficient to support the finding of indecent exposure because there is no evidence that he bared his buttocks “lewdly.” We agree.

As relevant, section 314 provides that “[e]very person who willfully and lewdly . . . [ft| [e]xposes his person, or the private parts thereof, in any public place, or in any place where there are present other persons to be offended or annoyed thereby!,] . . . [^] ... is guilty of a misdemeanor.” (§ 314, subd. 1.) Under section 314, “lewd” intent is an essential element of the offense, and “something more than mere nudity” must be shown.

(In re Smith