disorderly conduct

noun

: a petty offense chiefly against public order and decency that falls short of an indictable misdemeanor

Examples of disorderly conduct in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

He was charged with three counts of reckless endangerment and one count of disorderly conduct. —Jessica Lynch, Billboard, 4 July 2024

Bombard was jailed and held for over an hour and his car was towed, the complaint said, and the Franklin County state’s attorney charged him with disorderly conduct. —Victoria Bisset, Washington Post, 27 June 2024

Bam Margera, the former star of Jackass, pled guilty to two counts of disorderly conduct charges Wednesday over an altercation at his home near Philadelphia. —Bruce Haring, Deadline, 26 June 2024

East Lyme Police Chief Michael Finkelstein on Monday was charged with making false statements, violation of a protective order and disorderly conduct, NBC Connecticut reported. —Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 25 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1786, in the meaning defined above

Legal Definition

disorderly conduct

noun

dis·​or·​der·​ly conduct

: conduct that is likely to lead to a disturbance of the public peace or that offends public decency

also : the petty offense of engaging in disorderly conduct compare breach of the peace

Note: The term disorderly conduct is used in statutes to identify various acts against the public peace. It has been held to include the use of obscene language in public, the blocking of public ways, and the making of threats. A statute must identify acts that constitute disorderly conduct with sufficient clarity in order to avoid being held unconstitutional because of vagueness.