Kilted exposure

[Declan Rowan]

So I was talking with my Da this morning, and he says to me "I heard on the radio that someone in a kilt got charged with exposure this weekend, probably at the march you were talking about. A gust of wind came and pulled the kilt up, and someone got offended and pressed charges."

So this gets me wondering: What sort of defense could one have against this? (More focused on legal rather than precaution. It's one of the reasons why I wear my heavy 8 yard kilt if I know its going to be windy.) Also: should someone expose a kilt wearer against his wishes, who do you think is at fault?

I'm really growing tired of America and its NeoCons...

(I put this in the media section because it was discussed on the radio, but if you think it should be moved to general, feel free.)

[MACKAY]

I would suggest that a sound defense would be that the incident was “An Act OF God”. Same as your clause in most insurance policies, if the act or event was caused by a natural event such as lightning, rain, tornado or gust of wind, it’s not your fault.

I also agree that here in the United States we are overly Politically Correct and take ourselves wayyyy toooo seriously when things like this happen.

Brian Mackay
"Manu Forti"

[Hamish]

Declan, I cannot comment on American laws, but as far as I understand it here in the UK, accidental exposure (such as the effects of an unexpected gust of wind) is not an offence, but purposeful exposure is.

We have a kilt-wearing British police officer in our midst (Al Sporrano), and there's another over at "Tom's Café" (Stu). They would be able to corroborate the UK position.

[Doc Hudson]

[quote="Declan Rowan
I'm really growing tired of America and its NeoCons... [/quote]

I consider charging a man with indecent exposure due to a gust of wind to be ridiculous. It would be a different coloured horse if the gent happened to be mooning someone. Then they'd have to suffer the consequences for their action is someone took offense.

As Hamish said, "Acts of God" should be sufficient defense for such a charge.

As for your comment about being tired of America and it's "NeoCons" (I presume you are talking about Political, Social, and Moral Conservatives), as a staunch Conservative, I have two things to say.

(1) If you don't like what is going on in the United States, campaign to make changes.

(2) Or, feel free to emigrate. No one will attempt to stop you.

BTW, Brian, Political Correctness is generally considered to be a Liberal ailment.

[bubba]

BTW, Brian, Political Correctness is generally considered to be a Liberal ailment.

Doc, it started out that way, but now it's prevalent at both ends of the spectrum. Political Correctness is simply a lazy persons way of avoiding the difficult chore of actually thinking. It's a dangerous trend that will have serious consequences.

[al' Sporrano]

Declan, I cannot comment on American laws, but as far as I understand it here in the UK, accidental exposure (such as the effects of an unexpected gust of wind) is not an offence, but purposeful exposure is.

We have a kilt-wearing British police officer in our midst (Al Sporrano),

That's me. Hi Ham, it's been a while.

No one is going to get into any trouble with accidental exposure. That's not to say a complaint wouldn't be looked into.

If someone deliberately lifted their kilt well that would be a different matter. Likewise if it was lifted by another

Al

[Mike n NC]

Declan, I cannot comment on American laws, but as far as I understand it here in the UK, accidental exposure (such as the effects of an unexpected gust of wind) is not an offence, but purposeful exposure is.

We have a kilt-wearing British police officer in our midst (Al Sporrano), and there's another over at "Tom's Café" (Stu). They would be able to corroborate the UK position.

Just pulling from past knowledge gained from having lived in so many states, it's pretty much as Ham said. The key word involved here is "intent". Most places have laws that require some level of "intent" to expose a portion of one's body before they carry any judicial weight.
I would wager a guess that if the guy in question was actually charged then the charge will be dropped long before it gets to court. Most DA's don't like being laughed out of the courtroom.
On the other hand, you have the possible scenairo of someone exposing himself, by intent, and trying to blame it on the wind.

My $0.02 worth

Mike

[Ugly Bear]

So I was talking with my Da this morning, and he says to me "I heard on the radio that someone in a kilt got charged with exposure this weekend, probably at the march you were talking about. A gust of wind came and pulled the kilt up, and someone got offended and pressed charges."

Sounds like nonsense to me. A second-hand account with no names, no places and no source cited. I found nothing in yahoo news about this, and Googling this came up with nothing in the first 30 hits. If this is for real, the defendant will probably face no consequences aside from a warning. And not even a stern warning. The presiding judge would probably chuckle.

I'm really growing tired of America and its NeoCons...

Who said anything about neocons? What you described is a puritanical streak, and that's been on these shores for centuries. Nothing "neo" about it. If you're tired, take a nap.

[M. A. C. Newsome]

BTW, Brian, Political Correctness is generally considered to be a Liberal ailment.

Hey, I thought NeoCons were liberal!

Matt

[Declan Rowan]

Lol I really set the powder keg off with this one. First of all, having lived in two different countries on two different continents, I've come to the realisation that I'm a personal-ist. I think as a society that people are becoming more and more separated from each other. As a result, they immediately turn to government and courts and the law to deal with an issue that could be easily settled by simply talking to the person in question or taking responsiblity for one's actions.

One case was with a neighbor of a friend who, instead of asking him what repairs he was doing to the house, called the town to check if he had the correct permits. When my friend asked why, the neighbor finally said it was because the noise was preventing him from watching a TV program. So my friend just didnt use power tools during the hour the show was on. Simple solution that didnt need government. (The letter that Les posted from the ex-wife's lawyer also comes to mind)

And so it is this individual. Rather than just saying "Wind happened, no intent, lets go over and say to the man 'You might want to pin down the kilt because it's windy'," government was brought in.

Its just a sad state of affairs. I used the term NeoCons because they are currently in power and have been pushing alot more into people affairs. Had this happend 10 years ago, I would have said some other power probably.