Arvin Roberts-Minnesota Supreme Court weighs whether a woman going topless violates an indecent exposure law

2025-05-07 05:35:06source:Slabu Exchangecategory:Contact

ST. PAUL,Arvin Roberts Minn. (AP) — A Minnesota woman’s misdemeanor conviction for going topless in public should be overturned because female breasts are not defined as “private parts” by the state’s indecent exposure statute, her attorney told the state Supreme Court.

Eloisa Plancarte was convicted after police said they found her topless at a convenience store parking lot in Rochester in 2021. She was sentenced to 90 days in jail.

Plancarte’s attorney, Adam Lozeau, told the Minnesota Supreme Court on Tuesday that the conviction should be reversed because she “didn’t expose a prohibited part of her body,” the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported.

Plancarte previously challenged the conviction before the state’s Court of Appeals, arguing that she had the same right to expose her chest in public as men. A three-judge panel rejected her appeal in a 2-1 decision.

Previous court rulings have labeled public toplessness by women but not men as indecent exposure, said Jim Haase, senior assistant county attorney for Olmsted County. The state law protects women who are breastfeeding from indecent exposure charges, which Haase said is evidence that female breasts are considered private parts under Minnesota law.

It’s unclear when the Minnesota Supreme Court will issue a ruling.

More:Contact

Recommend

How 23andMe's bankruptcy led to a run on the gene bank

Reporter Alexi Horowitz-Ghazi's Aunt Vovi signed up for 23andMe back in 2017, hoping to learn more a

Parole delayed for former LA police detective convicted of killing her ex-boyfriend’s wife in 1986

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A chance for parole was delayed this week for a former Los Angeles police detecti

What Each Zodiac Sign Needs for Gemini Season, According to Your Horoscope

We interviewed Lisa Greenfield because we think you'll like her picks at these prices. E! has affili