How The Law Deals With Disorderly Conduct

Disorderly conduct is the act of an individual disturbing public peace. The nature of the act is to corrupt the public morals, outrage the sense of public decency, affect the peace and quiet of persons who may witness them, engage in brawling or fighting or engage in such conduct as to constitute a breach of the peace. Disorderly conduct is typically a misdemeanor of the second degree. It is punishable although some statutes do not strictly enforce laws for the offense.

The individual who causes the disturbance will be referred to as a disorderly person. He is one with purpose to cause public inconvenience, disturbance or alarm. He recklessly creates a risk for himself as well as other people, engages in violent or tumultuous conduct or creates an intimidation or form of harm or physically threatening circumstance by any act with no legitimate and reasonable purpose. 

Some examples of disorderly conduct would be making unreasonable noise even after being told to cease, disrupts a legal proceeding or a lawful assembly of persons, argues or fights with another individual without due reason and basis, attempts or does an act presenting danger to himself or other individuals, loitering or being drunk in public. The act done or attempted is done recklessly, knowingly or intentionally and willfully by the disorderly person.

Other Forms of Disorderly Conduct

Offensive language is also strictly prohibited by law. An individual is will be charged with petty disorderly persons offense if he addresses unreasonably loud and offensively coarse or abusive language in a public place with the purpose to offend the sensibilities of a hearer or in reckless disregard of the probability of so doing. There is reckless and intentional disregard considering the circumstances of the individuals present and the setting of the utterance.

The public is described as the substantial group of persons who are present and affected by the abusive behavior. These individuals can be anyone in any public space like schools, neighborhoods, prisons, apartments, condominiums, parks and offices. Witnessing the disorderly conduct does not necessarily include the actual presence of the person such as the case of playing very loud music in the middle of the night when the offender is living in an apartment building, causing disruption to other tenants. 

What Can Be Done?

An operator may take a disorderly person into custody in a reasonable manner for a reasonable time if there was reasonable ground for the operator to believe that the conduct was creating a threat to the life or safety of the disorderly person or other individuals. A law enforcement officer must immediately be contacted after detainment. 

The law enforcement officer may arrest without a warrant if there was reasonable ground for the law enforcement officer to believe that the conduct was creating a threat to the life or safety of the disorderly person or other individuals. If the disorderly person resists detainment or arrest, he can be charged of first degree misdemeanor.

Penalties For Disorderly Conduct 

Disorderly conduct is a misdemeanor punishable by fines or imprisonment. Fines can range from $100 to $1,000 and the offender can be imprisoned if fines are not paid fully from twenty four hours to three months.

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