The Law Offices of James M. Freeman, P.C.

Mardi posted a comment to my earlier blog, "Riding Under the Influence" asking,

What about naked bicycling? Is that prohibited under Illinois law?

Mardi must be looking forward to the upcoming Naked Ride, set for Saturday June 9, 2007. I look forward to seeing you there and naked Mardi. The Naked Ride in 2005 made for an awkward exchange the following Monday between myself and one of the senior partners. It went something like this:

Big Time Equity Partner: Say... You weren't out riding your bike on Saturday night? Were you?

LJ: Hmmm... [smile] Maybe. Why?

Big Time Equity Partner: Well, funny thing is... I was leaving the theater with [other Big Time Equity Partner] and our wives when we saw a whole bunch of bicyclists go by and... uhhh... [insert giddy giggles here]

The idea of an associate making a partner feel uncomfortable was a real departure from the norm, but one partner had a sense of humor - the other never spoke of it again. As you might imagine this made for humorous stories at every office party from there on out.

THE LAW

The Chicago Municipal Code states:

8-8-080 Indecent exposure or dress.
Any person who shall appear, bathe, sunbathe, walk or be in any public park, playground, beach or the waters adjacent thereto, or any school facility and the area adjacent thereto, or any municipal building and the areas adjacent thereto, or any public way within the City of Chicago in such a manner that the genitals, vulva, pubis, pubic hair, buttocks, perineum, anus, anal region, or pubic hair region of any person, or any portion of the breast at or below the upper edge of the areola thereof of any female person, is exposed to public view or is not covered by an opaque covering, shall be fined not less than $100.00 nor more than $500.00 for each offense. (Prior code § 192-8; Amend Coun. J. 12-4-02, p. 99931, § 5.4)

The Illinois Criminal Code reads as follows (in relevant part):

720 ILCS 5/11-9
Sec. 11-9. Public indecency.
(a) Any person of the age of 17 years and upwards who performs any of the following acts in a public place commits a public indecency:
1) An act of sexual penetration or sexual conduct as defined in Section 12-12 of this Code; or
2) A lewd exposure of the body done with intent to arouse or to satisfy the sexual desire of the person.
Breast-feeding of infants is not an act of public indecency.
(b) "Public place" for purposes of this Section means any place where the conduct may reasonably be expected to be viewed by others.
(c) Sentence.
Public indecency is a Class A misdemeanor. A person convicted of a third or subsequent violation for public indecency is guilty of a Class 4 felony.

Being on a bicycle doesn't affect the law with respect to indecent exposure. If you expose your anus, genitals (or for women the breast below the upper edge of the areola) you risk being charged with a violation of the Chicago Municipal Ordinance or the Illinois Criminal Code.

There can be real problems associated with a violation of indecent exposure laws as well since it may be considered a sex offense (note that the Illinois Code Chapter heading is "Sex Offenses"). Because of that, an individual charged with such a violation should not only aggressively defend the charge, but also try to get their record expunged so the violation doesn't cause other problems for them down the line with respect to employment or other aspects of their life.

The cool thing about the naked ride is that total nakedness is not required. You can go as naked as you want.