A 32-year-old Wellington man is facing two first-degree misdemeanor charges after separate reports from a woman walking her puppy and a minor described the same driver exposing himself in a neighborhood near a gym. Malcom Depas was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail on Sunday, accused of exposing his penis to a woman before allegedly returning to the same area and stroking himself in front of a juvenile.
A Puppy Walk Interrupted
According to WPEC, the investigation began around 9:26 a.m. in a Palm Beach neighborhood when a woman walking her dog told deputies a gray or gold Ford Fusion pulled up beside her. The driver reportedly called out “hey” several times and asked for her name before, per the affidavit, exposing his penis outside his gym shorts. The station reports she initially only planned to document the encounter but later decided she wanted to press charges.
Formal booking records reviewed by Palm Beach and Broward Mugshots show Depas was formally booked on September 27, facing two separate counts of first-degree misdemeanor exposure of sexual organs, with an initial bond listed at $0.00. The two counts stem from what the station describes as two unrelated complainants who did not know each other.
A Second Encounter Near a Gym
The same vehicle later drove around a gym or clubhouse area twice before parking near the exit, the station's report states. The driver allegedly opened the car door and was stroking his penis in front of a juvenile who became the case's second complainant. The affidavit notes the driver did not speak to the juvenile or solicit any sexual activity during that encounter.
One complainant identified Depas during a field identification procedure, according to the same account. Depas denied both allegations and told deputies a relative had driven his car earlier that day, but he declined to provide contact information for that relative — a detail that remains unresolved as the case moves forward. Deputies with the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, which provided the affidavit, arrested Depas following the identification.
The Arrest
Wellington has received its municipal police coverage through a contractual arrangement with District 8 of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office since 1996, operating out of a local substation rather than maintaining its own department, according to Wikipedia. That arrangement explains why PBSO deputies, not a separate Wellington police force, handled both complaints.
Depas was arrested after a field identification, although deputies had not witnessed the alleged acts themselves.
Why Misdemeanor Charges, Not a Felony
Even though one complainant was a minor, Depas was charged with a first-degree misdemeanor rather than a felony.
A first-offense conviction under § 800.03 instead carries up to one year in county jail, one year of probation, and a $1,000 fine, per Florida's statutes. Older appellate precedent from the 1984 case Goodmakers v. State also requires prosecutors to prove the exposure was committed with vulgar, lascivious, or indecent intent — public nudity or partial exposure alone is not enough for a conviction, a burden that matters given Depas's denial and his claim about the relative driving his car.
A Shifting Legal Landscape
The timing of the arrest lands just before a significant change in Florida law. Chapter 2026-159, also known as HB 1525, was signed and takes effect Thursday, creating a new statute, § 800.035, that makes it a third-degree felony to expose sexual organs or masturbate while observing a child under 16 for sexual gratification, according to the Ludwin Law Group. Under the new law, prosecutors will not need to prove the minor was even aware of or saw the exposure — a threshold that did not yet apply when Depas was arrested.
A conviction on the current misdemeanor charge would not automatically land Depas on Florida's public sex offender registry, since mandatory registry requirements generally apply to felony offenses under Chapter 800, per Lockett Law.
Part of a Broader Pattern in Palm Beach County
Depas's case fits a pattern of exposure allegations moving through Palm Beach County courts this year. In West Palm Beach police charged a 33-year-old man this month with exposure of sexual organs alongside aggravated stalking and occupied-dwelling burglary after he repeatedly exposed himself outside a resident's apartment windows, illustrating how exposure allegations often overlap with stalking or trespass charges. Separately, a Florida appeals court ordered a new evidentiary hearing in August for a Palm Beach County man convicted in 2018 of exposing himself to children, after the young witnesses recanted and said his pants had accidentally slipped while dancing — a case underscoring how sensitive witness credibility and intent can be in these prosecutions.
Open questions remain in the Depas case, including whether prosecutors will revisit or adjust the charges, whether investigators or the defense will attempt to locate the unnamed relative Depas said was driving his car, and what emerges from his initial appearances in Palm Beach County circuit court.
