Disorderly Conduct in Utah
Criminal Charges Have to Be Statutorily Defined in Utah
Criminal charges in Utah must come from a state statute detailing what the offense is and its resulting punishment. There must be a law prohibiting specific actions on the books for a Salt Lake prosecutor or other Wasatch Front prosecutor to charge a suspect with a crime. Crimes can’t be made up on the spot just to punish a person police don’t like or if the public thinks a person deserves punishment. It is a fundamental right in the criminal justice system for people to be protected against any type of criminal charge that doesn’t exist at the time of the suspect’s actions.
Over time, Utah has passed enough laws to cover practically any behavior and most prosecutors are creative too in the way they construe the facts to apply to a certain law. For those situations that don’t arise to the violation of a certain law, the criminal charge of disorderly conduct is usually the catchall crime that can include numerous things. Prosecutors will usually tack this charge on to many criminal offenses too just to get one more charge on a person.
Disorderly Conduct in Utah
“A person is guilty of disorderly conduct if he refuse to comply with the lawful order of the police to move from a public place, or knowingly creates a hazardous or physically offensive condition, by any act which serves no legitimate purpose.” Disorderly conduct also includes other things like making unreasonable noises in a private place that can be heard in a public place or obstructing vehicular or pedestrian traffic. So, while driving, if you stop in the road to talk with your neighbor and you do so recklessly, you may be charged with disorderly conduct.
Disorderly conduct is a criminal charge that many people are charged with because it is so easy to violate its provisions. Disorderly conduct is usually an infraction, like a speeding ticket, but it may be a class C misdemeanor depending on the situation. So a disorderly conduct infraction may not be worth fighting but a misdemeanor may be. Utah criminal defense attorneys can help those wondering if they should fight a disorderly conduct charge.
Utah Criminal Defense Attorneys Fight Disorderly Conduct Charges
If you have been charged with a disorderly conduct and you want to fight it, call a Utah criminal defense attorney from Salt Lake based Salcido Law Firm. A Salcido Law Firm criminal defense attorney will meet with you for free and evaluate whether you have a good chance at winning against a disorderly conduct charge. Call 801.618.1334 to speak with an attorney today.
