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Homeless man charged with indecency offense in Boulder

On Behalf of | Dec 4, 2014 | Criminal Defense

The urge to urinate can occur at inconvenient times. Just ask a parent on a long road trip with a young child. Individuals forced to relieve themselves in public places sometimes face criminal charges for public indecency.

A pair of Regional Transportation District guards recently approached a man who was urinating in a tunnel at the Boulder Transit Center. The 43-year-old homeless man had disembarked from a bus, where others said the passenger had been drinking alcohol. Security guards confronted the shirtless man while his pants were pulled down.

The man apparently refused an order to sit down. One RTD guard reached for a bottle of alcohol inside the man’s jacket, one of two bottles found in the homeless man’s possession. Reports said the man grabbed and held onto the guard’s arm, then reached for the guard’s duty belt.

The three men tumbled to the ground after the second guard, an RTD supervisor, grabbed the defendant. The homeless man was hobbled by a police officer, who joined the struggle. The man was jailed on $5,000 bond and charged with three counts of assault, one second-degree charge and two third-degree assault charges.

The man also faces charges of resisting arrest, public consumption of alcohol, obstructing a police officer, hindering public transportation and public indecency. Authorities said that the defendant’s name appeared on two Denver arrest warrants. Reports didn’t state what crimes he had been accused of committing in Denver.

Colorado’s public indecency law forbids intercourse and lewd fondling or exposure in public places. Public urination may be unpleasant to witness, but few people probably associate the act with something overtly sexual.

A criminal defense attorney will investigate and challenge charges brought by police and prosecutors. A defendant’s legal status improves with every charge a lawyer can get dismissed or reduced to a lesser offense. Attorneys are also prepared to defend your position in court.

Source: Daily Camera, “Boulder homeless man arrested after struggle with RTD guards” Mitchell Byars, Nov. 25, 2014