Richard Shapiro--who was arrested in a parking lot at Sunnyvale Baylands Park on Jan. 17, 2004--was also convicted of possession of an illegal defense spray, possession of "billy clubs" and resisting arrest.

Shapiro has been protesting his arrest for over a year. He maintains that he was relaxing in his car before going ballroom dancing and that an officer began abusing him verbally and physically.

Shapiro has become a regular at city council meetings up and down the peninsula and has carried a number of signs outside the Sunnyvale Public Library. One of those signs--which read "F_K Police Brutality," caused a confrontation between Shapiro and a member of the public, and he was again arrested. He was released the next day after a judge found no reason to hold him.

"Most people who are caught masturbating in public try to come into court and deal with it quickly and quietly," said Deputy District Attorney Bryan Slater. "But, in this case, it seems like he did the opposite."

Testimony for the trial began March 8. On March 11, the jury handed down its decision, and Shapiro was sentenced.

Shapiro said he was found guilty because he was not allowed to present the truth behind what happened.

"The problem I see is with a system where a defendant is pressured and prohibited from entering into the evidence his or her true rendition of what happened," Shapiro said.

He said he was denied the chance to present recordings of conversations with officers, those he said he made with tape recorders he claims he wears wherever he goes.

He also said he didn't have a chance to talk about the apparatus he uses for breathing exercises in his car. He said that using the apparatus in his car makes it look as if he is masturbating.

Shapiro was sentenced to three years probation and psychiatric counseling at the discretion of his probation officer. He must also pay an $800 fine and serve 50 days in county jail.

The presiding judge did not immediately order the jail time, giving Shapiro time to file an appeal. Slater said he expects the appeal to be filed by March 25.

Although Shapiro was convicted of masturbating in public, he will not have to register as a sex offender on the Megan's Law website because his crime falls into one of the exempted categories.