Primarily, such activity constitutes nuisance behavior and does not pose a serious threat to community safety. However, there are many reasons why the police should care about it.
• Public sexual activity can offend inadvertent witnesses.
• Public sexual activity can deter the legitimate use of public spaces.
• Public sexual activity may be related to the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS.
• Discarded used condoms, lubricant containers, and other paraphernalia are unattractive and potentially hazardous.
• Public sexual activity can attract a hostile audience, creating a risk of violent crime such as assault and/or robbery, as well as nonviolent crime such as blackmail.
• Certain types of public sexual activity (e.g., flashing, streaking) are associated with heavy drinking.
...Any patterns, or lack thereof, are consistent across studies of the various types of public sexual behaviors.2
Certain patterns (e.g., opposite-sex coupling at a "lovers' lane") have not been studied empirically, while others (e.g., same-sex contact in public restrooms) have been studied much more extensively. It is important to note that engaging in same-sex activity does not necessarily imply a homosexual identity; in fact, many men who have sex with men in public places are married or otherwise heterosexually involved, and do not consider themselves to be gay.3
When apprehended, many offenders may suffer substantial social repercussions, in addition to any criminal justice related consequences that may ensue. Threats to their marriages, friendships, jobs, reputations, and social standing often cause them to try to distract attention from their behaviors by showing exaggerated degrees of respectability, such as strong ties to the religious community or passionate condemnation of homosexuality.4
The larger the community's moral objections to public sexual activity mean that participants have much to lose if they are discovered.
...
Public restrooms.
While anecdotal evidence suggests that opposite-sex couples sometimes engage in sexual activity in public restrooms, the majority of research and public concern has focused on same-sex activity at such sites. Public restrooms so employed are often called "tearooms," and the behavior itself is sometimes called "cottaging." Restrooms in public parks, shopping malls, department stores, train and bus stations, and gyms are popular locations for such activity. They are usually easily accessible, their structural features afford some privacy, and their layouts provide an opportunity to spot potential witnesses.9
For example, most activity takes place in a stall as far away from the restroom door as possible. If someone enters the restroom, the
participants typically stop the activity.10 Selected restrooms are usually isolated and rarely used by those in the area for legitimate purposes (e.g., shopping). This very pretext allows participants to remain in the restroom for some time without seeming suspicious.11
In contrast to gay bars or sex clubs, public restrooms are neutral places, and one's presence there does not automatically indicate a homosexual identity.12
...
Truck stops and highway rest areas.
Truck stops and highway rest areas are also popular locations for same sex
activity.† They are easily accessible by vehicle, and provide a number of legitimate reasons for people's presence.13 The activity itself may take place in a vehicle, a restroom, or a secluded outdoor area. As with those who engage in sexual activity in public restrooms, those who do so at truck stops or rest areas generally don't want to be detected.14
...A lack of privacy may also be the reason for male sexual activity in public restrooms. In particular, men with heterosexual identities may want to conceal their behavior from significant others. Their heterosexual identities also deter them from using other, less-public venues such as gay bars or sex clubs.20 Some homosexual men also lack the freedom to pursue same-sex partners privately due to family or peer disapproval.21 A community's condemnation of homosexuality may drive the behavior to remote, although public, locations, particularly among those exploring their sexuality and not yet connected to the gay community.22
Public sexual activity is not always simply a solution for those lacking a private alternative. Those who engage in "dogging" want strangers to watch them. Having an audience heightens their pleasure, and they may feel validated by others' wanting to watch and enjoy their "performance."23 For others, the risk of being caught engaging in public sexual activity serves as an aphrodisiac and increases their overall pleasure.24
Sexual activity in "tearooms," parks, rest areas, and truck stops is usually impersonal and anonymous, and does not lead to complicated entanglements involving commitments, obligations, or expectations from either party.25 Those dissatisfied with their sex lives with their partners may consider engaging in anonymous and impersonal sexual activity as less problematic than having an affair.26 And there's no need to solicit a prostitute, as the sex is free.27 Finally, those engaging in anonymous sexual activity generally needn't worry about assessments of their physical attractiveness or social class, judgments often made in formal dating situations.28
With the advent of the Internet, the practice of "dogging" has become more widespread. Those who want to be observed engaging in sexual activity use Internet chat rooms to provide potential audiences with dates, times, and locations.31 People also use chat rooms to offer tips to those interested in watching or participating in public sexual encounters. For example, the patterned use of parked vehicles' turn signals, interior lights, and window openings can serve as signals to interested parties.
Men seeking anonymous sexual contact with men in public restrooms must adhere to a highly structured and sequential pattern of interaction.32 These "scripts" generally involve eye contact, movement, and position in the restroom, and very rarely include any verbal exchange.33 The specific patterns differ, but are just as compulsory, in other settings such as truck stops and rest areas.34 Legitimate park or restroom users may be
concerned about being sexually propositioned by other men. However, given the complexity of the behavioral scripts guiding these transactions, mistaken propositions are unlikely.35
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HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.
Men patronizing public sex locations have long been identified as a population at increased risk of contracting HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Historically, there have been three main risk reduction strategies: 1) openly discussing one's sexual history, 2) limiting one's number of sexual partners, and 3) practicing "safe sex."
Clearly, the first two are at odds with regularly having anonymous sex.38 Some suggest that heterosexually identified men who engage in same-sex public activity may deny their risk of HIV exposure and disregard important precautions.39 Because these men are not in the traditional target populations for prevention and education efforts, their knowledge of safe-sex practices has been questioned. Yet research has found that men who participate in sexual activity in public restrooms tend to be highly knowledgeable about HIV and its transmission.40
Further, whether participants practice safe sex appears to depend more on the situational dynamics and participants' characteristics than on the location's being public.41 Nevertheless, outreach and education efforts continue to target this population to minimize the overall public health risk.
