If you’re like most people, you’ve heard of disorderly conduct charges – but did you know that “disorderly conduct” is more of an umbrella term? It covers a lot of things; it’s kind-of a catch-all for police and the courts. They use the crime of disorderly conduct to describe any offense that disturbs the peace or unreasonable conduct that alarms or disturbs other people.
Here’s what you need to know about what types of behaviors can be considered disorderly conduct.
Disorderly Conduct Examples in Illinois
Check out these examples of disorderly conduct in Illinois:
- Fighting in public
- Yelling or arguing in public
- Urinating in public
- Pulling a fire alarm when there’s no fire
- Making a false report of a fire, bomb or explosive device
- Making a false report of a crime, whether you say it’s in progress now or that it’s already happened, when there’s actually no crime at all
- Requesting emergency response services when you know that their assistance is unnecessary
- Making a false report about an abused or neglected child
- Going on another person’s property to look inside a dwelling (like a house, an RV or another place a person could live), whether you’re doing it for a lewd purpose (such as a “peeping Tom” would) or you’re doing it for any other unlawful purpose
- Making a false report to the Department of Public Health
There are several other types of offenses that the state can count as disorderly conduct, too. It’s a catch-all term, so if you’re doing something that disturbs the peace, unnecessarily scares people, or bothers people, the police can charge you with disorderly conduct.
Is Disorderly Conduct a Misdemeanor or a Felony?
Disorderly conduct can be either a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the offense. It can be a Class C, Class B or Class A misdemeanor, or it can be a Class 4 or Class 3 felony.
If you’re convicted of a misdemeanor, you could spend up to a year in jail and pay fines of up to $2,500. If you’re convicted of a felony, you could be looking at up to 5 years in prison and fines of up to $10,000.
Related: 3 things to know about disorderly conduct in Illinois
What to Do if You’re Accused of Disorderly Conduct
If you’ve been arrested for disorderly conduct, you may want to call a Chicago criminal defense attorney right away. We’re here to help you, and we’ll be happy to provide you with a free consultation over the phone, through FaceTime or on Skype – just let us know what works for you.
Call us at 847-920-4540 or fill out the form below. We’ll be happy to talk to you about your disorderly conduct charges.
