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ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) -- Police are pledging to crack down on public sex and cruising in city parks after making their first-ever Tonaquint Park lewdness bust.
A 54-year-old St. George man and a 53-year-old Springville man were arrested Saturday afternoon and charged with lewdness in a public park.
Police Sgt. Craig Harding said officers patrolling the park heard noise coming from the restroom and from outside were able to see one man touch the other in a sexual manner.
"Any kid could have been exposed to this kind of activity, which is outrageous," Harding said.
The park purportedly has gained a reputation as a cruising spot for men to hook up.
"We heard there was possibly some gay stuff going on, and I have my officers patrol that area," Lt. Dave Moss said. "If there's people down there trying to hook up, they usually leave and go somewhere else."
Harding said, "We're going to cruise it more. We're going to work it undercover and try to stamp this out."
Leland Young, a gay community activist in St. George, said the community does not want people to behave badly in a park, but some fear the police will go beyond cracking down on public sex.
"There's been harassment on some levels. They're not going up to the heterosexual community and saying, 'What are you doing in the park?"' Young said.
Police denied targeting people for being gay.
"We can't target people. We can't target groups. We can't target cultures, but we can target criminal behavior," Harding said.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
