On this day in rock history, lead singer of The Doors Jim Morrison was arrested for the incident in Miami where he allegedly exposed himself during a Doors concert. Morrison was found guilty and sentenced to prison time but he died before his appeal could be heard.
In the spring of 1969, Doors frontman Morrison allegedly exposed himself to a concert audience. Over a year later, on September. 20th, 1970, the long arm of the law finally caught up to him, and he was arrested.
It all began during a show on March 1st 1969 show in front nearly 12,000 fans in Coconut Grove, Fla. According to some accounts, the singer decided to up the already exciting tone of the concert by dropping his trousers and exposing his genitals. As a Miami Herald reporter, Larry Mahoney, wrote in his article “Rock Group Fails to Stir A Riot”:
Many of the nearly twelve thousand youths said they found the bearded singer’s exhibition disgusting. Included in the audience were hundreds of unescorted junior and senior high school girls…. Morrison appeared to masturbate in full view of the audience, screamed obscenities, and exposed himself. He also got violent, slugged several [concert promoters], and threw one of them off the stage before he himself was hurled into the crowd.
To this day, Morrison’s bandmates deny this version of events. As guitarist Robby Krieger explained “They were complaining about Jim whipping it out onstage, which he didn’t do: 500 photos were entered as evidence at the trial and not one showed anything of the sort.”
Regardless, after rejecting a plea bargain, the singer was found guilty of misdemeanor counts of indecent exposure and open profanity and sentenced to prison time and a fine. The case was on appeal at the time of his death on July 3, 1971.
By early 1969, the formerly svelte singer had gained weight, grown a beard and mustache, and had begun dressing more casually—abandoning the leather pants and concho belts for slacks, jeans and T-shirts. During a March 1, 1969 concert at the Dinner Key Auditorium in Miami, Morrison attempted to spark a riot in the audience. He failed, but a warrant for his arrest was issued by the Dade County Police department three days later for indecent exposure. Consequently, many of the Doors’ scheduled concerts were canceled. In September 1970, Morrison was convicted of indecent exposure and profanity. Jim Morrison, who attended the sentencing “in a wool jacket adorned with Indian designs”, silently listened as he was sentenced for six months in prison and had to pay a $500 fine. But Morrison remained free on a $50,000 bond. At the sentencing, Judge Murray Goodman told Morrison that he was a “person graced with a talent” admired by many of his peers.In 2007 Florida Governor Charlie Crist suggested the possibility of a posthumous pardon for Morrison, which was announced as successful on December 9, 2010. Drummer John Densmore denied Morrison ever exposed himself on stage that night.
The Fat Angel Sings 