I am writing about this topic because I was awakened at 3:00am this morning to heart thumping, very loud music coming from outside somewhere. I thought to myself, I cannot be the only person jarred from their slumber to hear this at 3:00am. Surely some brave soul will seek out the culprit and ask to please turn their music down. Not so. Maybe we were all thinking that someone else was going to ask them to turn it down or maybe even call 911. This racket lasted about 15 minutes although it felt more like an hour! As I was awake, I began thinking what really constitutes “disturbing the peace”?
According to the definition it means disorderly conduct in public such as fighting, shouting, playing loud music, holding an unlawful public assembly, bullying a student on or near school grounds, using offence words in a public place to incite violence or even allowing a dog to bark for long periods of time. When a person’s words or conduct jeopardizes others rights to peace and tranquility, they could be charged with this criminal offence.
Obviously living in a condo/townhouse may give you more opportunity to fall victim to disorderly conduct. But, that’s not to say that this doesn’t occur in neighborhoods as well. What recourse does one have? Many people may choose not to get involved by trying to quiet or diffuse a disorderly conduct situation. It seems to me that if the conduct doesn’t subside or stop, law enforcement should be alerted. Laws vary from state to state so it is a good idea to familiarize yourself on what the law is in your state. In many states disorderly conduct is a minor offense and is often excluded from background checks and criminal records especially if it is your first offense.
So, hopefully you won’t experience a 3:00am wake up like I did but at least you are maybe a little more familiar with disorderly conduct law like I am!