Prince George’s County Disorderly Conduct Lawyer

Fighting the state’s charge of disorderly conduct is difficult to do on your own. The consequences of probation and an unexpunged charge on your record could impede your life later down the road. Alleged defendants should not take chances. Rather, hiring an experienced attorney could prove beneficial.

A Prince George’s County disorderly conduct lawyer could help you build a defense against the state’s charges and work with you during court.

Disorderly Conduct in Prince George’s County Defined

First of all, it is something to be taken seriously because it carries a maximum penalty of 60 days in jail and a $500 fine. It is likened to as disturbing the peace which is an older law that was more commonly known.

When legislators rewrote much of the law, disorderly conduct redefined as failure to obey lawful order, disruptive noise, and actions that attract a crowd. So, more often than not, outside bars in College Park and other areas where there is more of a bar scene throughout PG County, officers could be found patrolling on foot, trying to maintain a little bit of order. If someone is loud, if a person is drawing a crowd to themselves, and they ask the person to move it along, they may ask a friend of the person to take the person with them. Some people listen, and some people do not.

If a person gets a little bit aggressive and loud, officers could charge that person with disorderly conduct because of the incident. If the disruption is in a public setting, is drawing attention, and is creating a scene, that is a good reason to take the person in. Additionally, the charge is found more often than a public intoxication charge, which is not really seen much anymore.

As a consequence of conviction, the maximum penalty is 60 days in jail and a $500 fine.

Similar Charges to Disorderly Conduct

Disorderly conduct and failure to obey a reasonable lawful order of a police officer, pair up quite regularly because they are exceptionally similar in nature and similar in evidence that is presented. The alleged offender is asked too many times to cease and desist or quiet down, and they did not do it which leads to the charge.

Unfortunately, these charges are issued quite a bit in the College Park area.

What Is the Definition of a Public Area?

A public area is anywhere the greater public has immediate access to or with. Public roadways, sidewalks, parking lots, and storefronts are all forms of public areas.

A Person Could Be Charged Undeservingly

Even if an alleged offender feels as though they have not warranted a charge, they could still be charged with disorderly conduct. If someone was somewhat disorderly, but well within the bounds of acceptable actions, they could still be charged. Does it mean the charge would be taken to trial by a prosecutor? Maybe not, but the charge remains. It is important for people to remember that an officer may believe they have probable cause to charge a person, but it may not be enough to substantiate an action beyond reasonable doubt in court.

Deferred Prosecution in PG County

After an officer decides that the behavior of an individual is not conducive to the public and sees that this person is disorderly in nature, a charge ensues. 

What does one do? Maybe they give something back to the community. Many of these cases could be worked out in such a fashion that requires the alleged individual to complete community service. Maybe the charged person takes a three or an eight-hour alcohol education program, and the state is satisfied with that.

The problem is often that people in the College Park area have had too good of a time. They did not get behind the wheel of a car. They were not pulled over for DUI. They just got into it or maybe they got into an argument with an officer potentially breaking up the fight. No one has been assaulted; it just got out of hand. Doing alcohol assessment, taking a three-hour course, doing a few hours of community service, everyone is made whole, and the court could dismiss the case. Maybe the individual gets a null prosse in the backend. They could expunge it from the individual’s record.

These are things that are workable here. No one is going to put somebody in jail for something like having too much to drink and being loud outside a bar. What purpose does that serve, to put a jail record on somebody who is young and ruin their life? It does not make sense, but it does make sense to make them take an alcohol class.

Sometimes, there is an amicable resolution the state may be on-board with. If someone has a good attorney who does a lot of work in PG County and knows the state’s attorney’s office as well, they reach out and see what they can do.

Why Work with a Lawyer for a Misdemeanor Charge?

People charged with disorderly conduct should work with an attorney because a lawyer has ways of resolving things that an individual cannot. An attorney could work with the state before a trial and possibly get the state to agree to terms regarding the case and charges. An individual is not going to be able to do that. For one reason, if the person charged is not an attorney, the state is not going to talk to them but could prosecute the person.

While some people may think that a probation before judgment is not so bad, the time it takes to complete probation is often extensive and that individual will likely not be able to expunge it until after completing the probation.

There are smart ways to work things out. The best thing to do is, clearly, get a lawyer and resolve things in a way that cleans the individual’s record up. An individual would not want to have this part of their permanent record. They do not want to have this impact their ability to get employment. They certainly do not want this to impact their ability to get a rental unit or a mortgage.

Companies do background checks fully and across the board. They absolutely want to make certain they have people who are responsible, who are respectful of those around them. If an individual comes in with a couple of disorderly charges, does someone really want to hire them? A lot of students are not going to go back to the same area, but this is a charge that affects younger people more often than those who are older.

They are renters, especially in college. They do not want to live in the dorms. They want to get an apartment. When apartment complexes run the individual’s background and discover the individual has got three disorderly charges, that complex may deny the applicant.  Are they really going to want to rent to the individual and worry about the person’s neighbors?

The fallouts go a lot further than many people realize. Alleged defendants should get a lawyer involved, do the right thing and they save themselves the trouble of trying to fix it on the backend because, sometimes, they cannot fix it, and if they are found guilty, it is not expungable. And eventually, they are going to have to explain the charge later in life like during job interviews.

Contact a Prince George’s County Attorney Today

Finding that you have been charged with disorderly conduct after a night out with friends is something nobody wishes to have on their record. The far-reaching consequences of a criminal record.

A Prince George’s County disorderly conduct lawyer could help you fight the state’s charge against you. Reach out today to preserve your future.