Debra Ballou and Katie Mann, both undergraduates at the University of Maine, decided on a whim one night to jog naked through downtown Orono. A police officer spotted them and, convinced that what they were doing was illegal, arrested them.
Mann initially entered a guilty plea at her arraignment. But the judge questioned whether she really wanted to do that. Maine law, it turns out, holds that a person is guilty of indecent conduct only if they knowingly expose their genitals in public. Since females' private parts are, in fact, pretty private, the officer conceded in court that he hadn't actually seen the genitals of the coeds on the night in question. As a result, the women were acquitted.
Judge Jesse Gunther of Bangor's 3rd District Court says wryly, "I would assume the legislature will probably be addressing the issue." But apparently lawmakers aren't afraid that the Orono incident is going to set off a renewed fad for streaking. No bills changing the indecency laws have since been filed, according to the state Legislative Information Office.
"I know our town council didn't really have a big deal," Ballou adds. "They thought people should just let it go."
