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Diver Guilty of Indecent Exposure
Man convicted of in-home indecent exposure
2 women say they saw him naked from windows of his Virginia home
From AP
FAIRFAX, Va. - As Erick Williamson sees it, being naked is liberating, and if passers-by get an eyeful while he's standing in front of a picture window, that's not his problem.
A Fairfax County judge saw it a little differently Friday, convicting Williamson of indecent exposure in a case that has raised questions about what's OK when you're in your own home.
Two women said they saw much more of Williamson than they cared to in October, even though he never left the confines of his home. He received neither jail time nor a fine but is appealing anyway, saying a larger principle is at stake.
something like this is outrageous," Williamson said after he was convicted and sentenced. "I feel like I'm living in a fishbowl."
Williamson testified that he never intended to expose himself and was simply exercising "personal freedom" as he spent several hours naked in his Springfield home packing up belongings.
Police, prosecutors and two witnesses, though, said Williamson's actions were designed to draw attention to himself.
The first woman, school librarian Joyce Giuliani, said she heard some loud singing as she left her home and drove to work. As she drove by Williamson's home, she saw him naked, standing directly behind a large picture window.
'Eye contact'
A few hours later, Yvette Dean was walking her 7-year-old son to school along a trail that runs by Williamson's home.
She heard a loud rattle, looked to her left and saw Williamson standing naked, full frontal, in a side doorway.
"He gave me eye contact," Dean said, but otherwise made no gestures toward her or her son.
As she turned the corner, she looked back at the home, in disbelief at what she had just seen. Again, she saw Williamson, naked in the same picture window.
One of Williamson's housemates testified that Williamson had been nude well before dawn. Timothy Baclit testified that he woke up around 5 a.m. to go to work and found saw Williamson walking around "naked ... with a hard hat."
He said he warned Williamson that he would be visible to passers-by but that Williamson did not respond.
Williamson, 29, said the conversation with Baclit never occurred and that he never noticed that two women had seen him. He said "it did not occur to me" that people outside the home might see him naked.
'No one deserves to see it'
Regardless of whether he was seen, Williamson's conduct does not constitute indecent exposure, said his attorney, D***son Young.
Under Virginia law, the charge requires "an obscene display or exposure" and must occur in "a public place or a place where others are present."
Young argued that neither prong had been met.
"Mere nudity is insufficient to declare conduct obscene," Young said, noting that none of the women testified that Williamson was aroused or that he made any sort of obscene gesture. "Nudity in one's own home is not a crime."
Fairfax County Prosecutor Marc Birnbaum said the witness testimony shows that he intended to expose himself to the women by making himself visible for extended periods of time and drawing attention to himself by making rattling noises and singing.
"No one deserves to see it, certainly not a young child," Birnbaum said.
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Birnbaum sought jail time for Williamson, but General District Judge Ian M. O'Flaherty imposed only a suspended sentence, meaning that Williamson will serve no jail time if he keeps out of trouble.
If Williamson follows through on his plans to appeal, though, a circuit court judge could impose a stiffer punishment, technically up to a year in jail.
Williamson's Oct. 24 arrest received national attention and spurred debate about the boundaries of acceptable nudity.
Debate rages on
Kent Willis, director of the Virginia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, said there is no line that defines what is acceptable in these types of cases.
"How you define public and private space depends on the behavior that's taking place," Willis said. He said that if the case is pursued through appellate courts, it could potentially provide more clarity on what constitutes indecent exposure in Virginia.
Williamson, a commercial diver who has since moved out of Fairfax County, said he was shocked by the verdict. He suggested after the hearing that he was the victim of a double standard.
"If I was looking in her window, I think we'd be having a wh*** different conversation," he said.
2 women say they saw him naked from windows of his Virginia home
From AP
FAIRFAX, Va. - As Erick Williamson sees it, being naked is liberating, and if passers-by get an eyeful while he's standing in front of a picture window, that's not his problem.
A Fairfax County judge saw it a little differently Friday, convicting Williamson of indecent exposure in a case that has raised questions about what's OK when you're in your own home.
Two women said they saw much more of Williamson than they cared to in October, even though he never left the confines of his home. He received neither jail time nor a fine but is appealing anyway, saying a larger principle is at stake.
something like this is outrageous," Williamson said after he was convicted and sentenced. "I feel like I'm living in a fishbowl."
Williamson testified that he never intended to expose himself and was simply exercising "personal freedom" as he spent several hours naked in his Springfield home packing up belongings.
Police, prosecutors and two witnesses, though, said Williamson's actions were designed to draw attention to himself.
The first woman, school librarian Joyce Giuliani, said she heard some loud singing as she left her home and drove to work. As she drove by Williamson's home, she saw him naked, standing directly behind a large picture window.
'Eye contact'
A few hours later, Yvette Dean was walking her 7-year-old son to school along a trail that runs by Williamson's home.
She heard a loud rattle, looked to her left and saw Williamson standing naked, full frontal, in a side doorway.
"He gave me eye contact," Dean said, but otherwise made no gestures toward her or her son.
As she turned the corner, she looked back at the home, in disbelief at what she had just seen. Again, she saw Williamson, naked in the same picture window.
One of Williamson's housemates testified that Williamson had been nude well before dawn. Timothy Baclit testified that he woke up around 5 a.m. to go to work and found saw Williamson walking around "naked ... with a hard hat."
He said he warned Williamson that he would be visible to passers-by but that Williamson did not respond.
Williamson, 29, said the conversation with Baclit never occurred and that he never noticed that two women had seen him. He said "it did not occur to me" that people outside the home might see him naked.
'No one deserves to see it'
Regardless of whether he was seen, Williamson's conduct does not constitute indecent exposure, said his attorney, D***son Young.
Under Virginia law, the charge requires "an obscene display or exposure" and must occur in "a public place or a place where others are present."
Young argued that neither prong had been met.
"Mere nudity is insufficient to declare conduct obscene," Young said, noting that none of the women testified that Williamson was aroused or that he made any sort of obscene gesture. "Nudity in one's own home is not a crime."
Fairfax County Prosecutor Marc Birnbaum said the witness testimony shows that he intended to expose himself to the women by making himself visible for extended periods of time and drawing attention to himself by making rattling noises and singing.
"No one deserves to see it, certainly not a young child," Birnbaum said.
Click for related content
For more U.S. news, click here
Birnbaum sought jail time for Williamson, but General District Judge Ian M. O'Flaherty imposed only a suspended sentence, meaning that Williamson will serve no jail time if he keeps out of trouble.
If Williamson follows through on his plans to appeal, though, a circuit court judge could impose a stiffer punishment, technically up to a year in jail.
Williamson's Oct. 24 arrest received national attention and spurred debate about the boundaries of acceptable nudity.
Debate rages on
Kent Willis, director of the Virginia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, said there is no line that defines what is acceptable in these types of cases.
"How you define public and private space depends on the behavior that's taking place," Willis said. He said that if the case is pursued through appellate courts, it could potentially provide more clarity on what constitutes indecent exposure in Virginia.
Williamson, a commercial diver who has since moved out of Fairfax County, said he was shocked by the verdict. He suggested after the hearing that he was the victim of a double standard.
"If I was looking in her window, I think we'd be having a wh*** different conversation," he said.
Views: 234
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Toby Dodd on
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i think it's BS. you should be allowed to dress or not dress however you want in your own home.
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Permalink Reply by david on
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ohh my god i have seen a penis an actual penis! what am i going to do. 50% of the world has got one and i just saw one. i know i will call the police. yes a penis an actual penis can you belive it. get a grip(no pun intended) if you cant get naked, wear an hard hat and sing in your own home what kind of world do we live in. infact im going to do it tomorrow and show support for this man. i might even do a spot keep fit and jump about.
ps windows are for looking out of not in!
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Permalink Reply by Ethan on
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I think they're both right...and both wrong. He should practice a little courtesy to others and perhaps be mindful of his surroundings... after all would he want his daughter getting a good look at some strange guy down the street? At the same time if he wants to draw down the shades and then march around oiled up and in whip cream then I say go for it. The ladies who complained should have just had one of their husbands/boyfriends respectfully confront the guy and ask that he be more careful where he was "hanging out". Everyone seems to think that calling the cops is the answer to any situation they find uncomfortable and thats not right.
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Hello Flynn. How are your new hips holding up? Are you going poo poo regularly? Let us know if they're not treating you right at the home. And yes its good to have Toby around. We've all read the nativity story; "...and everyone wept tears of joy at the miricle that was baby Toby."
What part was I wrong about? I believe this entire thread is a conversation of OPINIONS. And one of my opinions is that you cant help yourself but to mention my name in all of your posts :)
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Q. Why do some people always resort to name calling?
A. If they can defame you, then they do not have to have a dialogue with you or even debate you since almost always a name caller cannot. If they can do so successfully, then some who may agree with you, may be too afraid to speak up themselves on the topic. After a name caller has defamed and demonized you, they will dismiss you. Its a defense mechinism used by passionate but weak minds.
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Permalink Reply by A.. Parnell on
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Ethan Go Kill yourself no one wants to hear how smart you think you are. For the next two years or so your ears should be doing all of your thinking your mouth should only be used for eating.
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Permalink Reply by Dive Diva on
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It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows. ~ Epictetus
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No I said that your dumbness
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I love the way this story has unfolded. In the original story the diver was standing in his dark kitchen making coffee naked (the dining area at the front of the house had floor length windows with sheer curtains covering them in the picture, the kitchen is pictured behind the dining area to the rear of the house).
The Dean woman (cop's wife) was walking her child to school and cut through the diver's yard to take a short cut and spying him naked she went up to the window and peered into the house. The time was first reported as 5 am and later the time was changed to 8 am.
Originally it was reported by the police that the woman was walking along the street in front of the house, later this was changed to reflect that she cut through his yard and peered into the window to see him clearly. Now its reported as she was walking on a path along side his house and he's standing naked in a side doorway making eye contact. Original story was that he never saw her.
There were no other witnesses or complaints about the diver, so the police canvassed the neighborhood with flyers asking for others to come forth and complain since they KNEW that this couldn't be an isolated incident (this was after the news media outed the woman peeping tom as a cops wife) and implied that the diver was a sexual deviant, the basis for that assumptive statement was never made clear.
Now a school librarian is listed as the FIRST complaintant, originally the police stated that there were no other complaints and that was one of the reasons for the canvassing of the neighborhood. A school librarian? what are the odds that of all the people in that neighborhood the cops would get a cop's wife and a school librarian as witnesses, that's a Puritain dream team if ever there was one.
There was also no mention of singing loudly, off key or otherwise in the initial media or police reports, nor was there any mention of him being naked with his helmet. If the librarian could hear him singing from her house, and while driving down the street, maybe he's got a shot on American Idol.
This script has more drama, fiction and plot twists than a daytime soap opera. Bisso and lunchbox best be careful, if this story ever makes it to TV, they just might lose their viewership.
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Permalink Reply by Sarah on
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So wasnt the cops wife trespassing then and a peeping tom? The judge should have throw this out of court given the REAL facts and details. Make me grateful no ones complained about me being naked and sunbathing in my own backyard!! Guess its only acceptable to be nude if your a woman!!! LOL We are the far better looking sex.
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Right on Sara. Yea this guy wasn't very smart in using common sense however what gives someone the right to trespass to get a better look ?
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