A father confronted a police officer after the officer said that it wasn’t a crime for an individual to expose themselves (Screenshot: @sidemoneytom/TikTok)
The Bend Police Department has issued a statement addressing a recent incident that sparked widespread concern among the community and across social media platforms.
A video clip posted on TikTok and other platforms depicted a police officer claiming that public indecency in front of children is not a crime in Oregon, prompting outrage and confusion.
The Gateway Pundit previously reported that the father shared a video on TikTok explaining that an individual had trespassed onto his property completely naked and approached his young child.
Reacting immediately, he shielded his child’s eyes from the naked trespasser and immediately dialed 911, expecting swift action against the individual for indecent exposure.
However, the response he received from the attending officer was shocking. In the recorded conversation, the officer can be heard stating that while trespassing is a crime, there are no laws in Oregon against “the actual nudity portion of it.”
The father is heard asking incredulously, “So you can expose yourself to children in Oregon.”
The officer responded, saying, “Again, if you’re not doing it for sexual gratification or the gratification of somebody else, yes, you are allowed to walk around in public naked.”
He states: “So a naked person came up onto my property here, approached my two-year-old kid completely naked… At what point did this become a normal and acceptable thing to do? The cops will literally do nothing about it. They’re basically saying we have to wait for that person to do something more serious to your kid before we can intervene.”
WATCH:
In a statement to The Gateway Pundit, the Bend Police Department addressed the community’s concerns with a clear message: if you’re outraged by this situation, it’s the state law that needs changing.
Read their statement below:
We’ve received many messages of concern about a post that has appeared on TikTok and X, and we want to make sure that our community has accurate information about the incident. As is often the case when short clips are shared on the internet, context can sometimes be missing.
At approximately 3:15 p.m. on Tuesday, June 4, officers responded to a caller reporting suspicious circumstances in the 1200 block of NW Knoxville Boulevard. The caller reported that a nude woman had walked up to the front of his home, where he and his child were present. When adults at the residence confronted her, she walked away.
Two of our officers responded to the incident. Officers trespassed the 32-year-old woman from the family’s property. She appeared to be experiencing a mental health crisis. If she returns to the property, she will be arrested.
In Oregon, being naked in public is not a crime. Both public indecency (ORS 163.465) and private indecency (ORS 163.467) have a required element of “intent to arouse.” That was not the case in this incident.
We understand the homeowner’s concern – it’s always off-putting when someone acting strangely is on your property, especially if your kids are present.
However, this is a state law, and so if you have concerns about Oregon’s public indecency laws, we would recommend you contact the Oregon Legislature to share your concerns.
Our Department has been accused of supporting pedophilia, and obviously that is not the case – we take crimes against children very seriously. In fact, our Department has an entire detective unit focused on investigating and holding accountable those who commit crimes against children.
Our officers accurately applied state law and properly trespassed the woman from the property, and we are proud of the work they do each day to keep our community safe.
The post UPDATE: Bend Police Department Clarifies Incident Involving Public Indecency in Front of Children — Urges Concerned Citizens to Contact Oregon Legislature to Change Flawed State Law appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
