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Summer Music Festivals: Avoid a Bonnaroo Arrest

By Stephanie Rabiner, Esq. on June 07, 2011 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Coachella may be long gone, but Bonnaroo kicks off this week. And the list of summer music festivals appears to be never ending.

Between Sasquatch, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Electric Daisy Carnival, and Outside Lands (just to name a few), you've got plenty of time to get drunk and naked this summer while listening to some great (and let's face it--not so great) music.

But be careful, among those thousands converging for the concerts will be police and law enforcement, too. With recent crackdowns on raves and concerns about underage drug use at large music events, expect to see police and security out in full force.

In other words, do yourself a favor and read below. It'll help you avoid any arrests for public intoxication or indecent exposure.

For those who need a little refresher on the law, indecent exposure statutes prohibit exposing one's genitals or so-called "private parts" in public with knowledge that someone may see and be alarmed or offended.

Any evidence of sexual gratification may raise the crime to sex offender status.

And remember, just because attendees of summer music festivals have come to expect the nakedness, it doesn't mean that the law doesn't apply.

As for public intoxication, an officer can ticket or arrest you for being visibly drunk or under the influence of drugs in public. In some states it's enough to just appear intoxicated, even if you really aren't.

The real takeaway here is that, if attending one of the many summer music festivals this year, avoiding arrest for public intoxication or indecent exposure is as easy as keeping on your undergarments and not acting like an idiot.

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