Exhibitionism: Criminal Lawyers

The offence of exhibitionism (Art. 185 CP) protects the sexual indemnity of minors and persons with disabilities needing special protection. The criminal type sanctions whoever performs or makes another person perform obscene exhibition acts before the protected passive subjects, with 6 months to 1 year of prison or 12 to 24 months' fine. Consolidated Supreme Court case-law clarifies that the type requires three cumulative elements: objective obscenity of the act (not mere nudity), effective presence of minor or disabled person (mere possibility is not enough), and specific intent of lascivious exhibition before the protected passive subject.

The methods of commission are diverse and have evolved with technology. In-person exhibitionism is the classic scenario: genital exposure or obscene acts in public spaces (parks, public transport, school exits, supermarkets) before minors. Digital exhibitionism covers the unsolicited sending of explicit sexual content images ("dick pics") to minors via social media, instant messaging or gaming platforms; in these cases it may concur with the grooming offence of Art. 183 CP. Videoconference exhibitionism includes performing obscene acts before minors on platforms like Omegle, chat rooms or video calls; when there is recording, it may additionally integrate child pornography (Art. 189 CP). The related offence of sexual provocation (Art. 186 CP) sanctions the sale, distribution or exhibition of pornographic material before minors.

The penalties and accessory consequences of Art. 185 CP are serious. The principal penalty is alternative: 6 months to 1 year of prison or 12 to 24 months' fine. Registration in the Central Sex Offenders Registry is mandatory upon final conviction and, where the victim is a minor, is not cancelled until 30 years after the sentence is served; in addition, Art. 192.3 CP imposes disqualification from working in any sphere with minors (education, sports, entertainment, school transport, paediatric healthcare) for a period 2 to 20 years longer than the prison term imposed. Supervised release of 1 to 5 years may be imposed as accessory security measure (Art. 192 CP). If the offence concurs with other sexual offences (harassment, assault, child pornography), the rules on real concurrence (cumulative penalties, Art. 73 CP) or ideal concurrence (Art. 77 CP) apply. Civil liability for moral damages to the victim and family can reach significant figures.

Technical defence is built on four axes. First, the absence of specific intent: the type requires intention of lascivious exhibition before the protected passive subject; casual acts (urinating in public, changing clothes in the car, accidental nudity after carelessness) lack the typical subjective component and, under case-law, exclude the offence. Second, the absence of protected victim: Art. 185 CP is only activated when minors or disabled persons are effectively present; if witnesses of the act were adults, the conduct may at most integrate an administrative infraction (Art. 37.5 Public Security Act) or, if it creates an objectively humiliating, hostile or intimidating situation, the minor offence of Art. 173.4 CP, but not exhibitionism of Art. 185 CP. Third, the non-provocative context: nudity in contexts where it is habitual (nudist beaches, locker rooms, saunas, hospitals) is not per se typical; the assessment must address the sexual or non-sexual character of the act in context. Fourth, perpetrator identification errors: in street exhibitionism, perpetrator descriptions are usually vague, photo recognitions may be vitiated, and evidence may be insufficient under the in dubio pro reo principle.

In current forensic practice, exhibitionism proceedings have diversified due to the rise of digital modalities: unsolicited sending of obscene images via AirDrop in public transport, messages to minors on social media, exposure in video calls with non-consented contacts. Organic Law 10/2022 and Organic Law 8/2021 on integral protection of childhood have reinforced the protective framework and expanded procedural tools. Organic Law 1/2025 on the efficiency of the Public Justice Service is a procedural and organisational statute: it does not amend the Criminal Code or its penalties. Constitutional case-law on electronic evidence and Supreme Court doctrine on intent and typical attribution configure a demanding procedural scenario. At Alonso Sala, our criminal lawyers specialized in exhibitionism intervene from legal assistance to the detained, articulate computer forensic expert reports to challenge typical attribution in digital scenarios, examine the evidential sufficiency of recognitions in in-person exhibitionism, and build procedural strategies aimed at acquittal, avoiding registration in the Central Sex Offenders Registry and its devastating accessory consequences on the defendant's professional trajectory.