Disorderly Conduct can be charged for various reasons in Fort Collins and Larimer County, and one of those reasons is for making unreasonable noise in a public place or near a private residence. I recently read a story about a woman who was ticketed for talking too loudly on her phone outside her home. According to the report, she was walking outside in her neighborhood while talking on the phone. Apparently, someone didn’t appreciate her volume, and called the police. Police arrived and felt it was appropriate to charge her. The woman was ticketed for the equivalent of Disorderly Conduct. Imagine being criminally charged for talking on the phone! Seems completely ridiculous if you ask me.
Fort Collins Disorderly Conduct Lawyer: Loudly Talking on the Phone is a Crime?
The Larimer County, Colorado law definition of Disorderly Conduct – C.R.S. 18-9-106 – is:
(a) Makes a coarse and obviously offensive utterance, gesture, or display in a public place and the utterance, gesture, or display tends to incite an immediate breach of the peace; or
(b) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2000, p. 708, § 39, effective July 1, 2000.)
(c) Makes unreasonable noise in a public place or near a private residence that he has no right to occupy; or
(d) Fights with another in a public place except in an amateur or professional contest of athletic skill; or
(e) Not being a peace officer, discharges a firearm in a public place except when engaged in lawful target practice or hunting or the ritual discharge of blank ammunition cartridges as an attendee at a funeral for a deceased person who was a veteran of the armed forces of the United States; or
(f) Not being a peace officer, displays a deadly weapon, displays any article used or fashioned in a manner to cause a person to reasonably believe that the article is a deadly weapon, or represents verbally or otherwise that he or she is armed with a deadly weapon in a public place in a manner calculated to alarm.
Its likely that if this had happened in Fort Collins and the law enforcement officer was ridiculous enough to charge the person, they would be ticketed for a violation of subsection (c).
Sentence for Disorderly Conduct in Loveland and Estes Park
In Fort Collins, Loveland, and Estes Park, a charge for Disorderly Conduct under subsection (a) or (c) is a class 1 petty offense, unless committed with the intent to disrupt a funeral. Then it is a class 2 misdemeanor. A charge under subsection (d) is a class 3 misdemeanor and a charge under subsection (e) or (f) is a class 2 misdemeanor. I guess, all I can say is, watch your volume while talking on the phone in public or outside your house, because you could end up with a criminal charge for talking on the phone too loudly.
If you or someone you love has been charged with Disorderly Conduct, be smart, exercise your right to remain silent, and contact the best criminal defense attorneys from the O’Malley Law Office at 970-658-0007 to schedule your free initial consultation. Together, we can protect your future.
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