Public masturbators in Sweden now may be able to get off without charges.
A recent court ruling in Sweden's Södertörn District Court suggests
that masturbating on the beach in Sweden is "OK," according to public
prosecutor Olof Vrethammar.
Vrethammar was prosecuting a 65-year-old who was charged with sexual
assault after getting literally caught with his pants down in June,
giving himself a sandy handy on a the Drevviken beach in Stockholm, according to The Local's translation of the Swedish newspaper Mitti.
A ruling which acquitted the man of the sex assault charges this week
found that although the he was publicly masturbating, he was not
directing his actions at anyone in particular, according to the Local.
This was enough to clear him of the sexual assault charge, though it's
unclear if the action is still in violation of other statutes in Sweden.
"With that [ruling]," prosecutor Vrethammar told the Mitti, "we can
conclude that it is OK to masturbate on the beach... [although] the act
may be considered to be disorderly conduct."
Dr. Liz Davies of London Metropolitan University has researched Sweden's child protection system, and told the Daily Mail the court decision surprised her.
"Sweden has a really robust child protection system and very rigorous
investigation around sexual abuse," she said. "So this judgement is
surprising given that such an act could be witnessed by children as well
as adults." The revelation that public masturbation may or may not be a criminal
offense in Sweden comes just two months after one Swedish political
party announced they'd like it to be illegal for men to stand while urinating. HMM dis one na wa oo!
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