Clovis's Public Conduct: The Rules That Matter

Every city handles public conduct a little differently. In Clovis, California, there are 9 distinct rules that residents and property owners should be aware of. Some are stricter than what neighboring cities enforce, and others are more relaxed. Here is what you need to know.

Public Marijuana Use

Clovis Municipal Code Section 5.22.06 confines all marijuana smoking, vaping, and consumption to inside a private residence's habitable areas. Garages and accessory buildings do not count unless fully enclosed at all times during use, so lighting up in a backyard, driveway, park, or parking lot is unlawful anywhere in the city, even for a valid medical patient.

Key details: Where allowed: Inside private residence habitable areas only. Garages excluded: Unless fully enclosed during use. Medical exception: Licensed clinics, hospices, care facilities. Civil penalty: $250 to $25,000 per day. Criminal penalty: Misdemeanor under Chapter 2, Title 1.

A consumption violation is a misdemeanor under Section 5.22.07(a), punishable per Chapter 2 of Title 1, with each day treated as a separate offense. Civil penalties of $250 to $25,000 per day apply under Section 5.22.07(c)(1), and the City may pursue injunctive relief and administrative citations in addition to criminal prosecution.

Compared to other cities, Clovis takes a harder line on public marijuana use. The enforcement and penalty structure reflects that.

Aggressive Panhandling

Clovis Municipal Code Section 5.25.02 bans door-to-door solicitation carried out in an aggressive or abusive manner, defining six specific behaviors that cross the line, from repeating a request after refusal to touching a person without consent. It targets conduct at doorsteps and driveways rather than street-corner panhandling generally.

Key details: Governs: Door-to-door solicitation conduct. Triggers: 6 defined aggressive behaviors. Repeat requests: Prohibited after a refusal. Physical contact: Touching without consent banned. Penalty basis: Chapter 2, Title 1 of the Code.

Violations of Chapter 5.25, including the aggressive door-to-door solicitation ban, are subject to the penalty provisions of Chapter 2 of Title 1 under Section 5.25.07(a), and nothing in the chapter limits enforcement of other applicable criminal or civil laws such as assault, battery, or trespass statutes that may also apply to the same conduct.

Outdoor Smoking Restrictions

Clovis Municipal Code Section 10.3.01(15) bans using any tobacco or tobacco related product, including e-cigarettes and vapes, anywhere inside a City park. The City must post signs warning that smoking and tobacco use are prohibited, and violating the ban is a criminal infraction enforced by Clovis Police and Code Enforcement.

Key details: Governing section: Clovis Municipal Code § 10.3.01(15). Where it applies: All City parks, including parking lots. Covers: Cigarettes, vapes, cannabis, e-cigarettes. Signage required: Yes, posted at park areas. Penalty class: Infraction.

A violation of Section 10.3.01(15) is charged as an infraction under the Clovis Municipal Code. Clovis Police officers and Code Enforcement staff patrol City parks and can issue an infraction citation to anyone smoking, vaping, or otherwise using tobacco or tobacco-derived products, or discarding related waste outside a designated container, within park boundaries. Because the same chapter also authorizes suspension from all City parks for ordinance violations under Section 10.3.05, a smoking citation can trigger escalating park-access suspensions on repeat offenses within a 30-day window in addition to the infraction penalty.

This is one of the stricter rules in Clovis's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

Loitering Rules

Clovis makes it unlawful to stand or sit idly on a street or sidewalk in a way that blocks foot traffic, or to block the entrance to a church, theater, hall, or other public gathering place, under Municipal Code § 5.27.501. The City's nuisance chapter also lets police disperse crowds of ten or more whose conduct substantially disturbs a neighborhood.

Key details: General obstruction ban: § 5.27.501, blocking streets/sidewalks/entrances. Old loitering chapter: Ch. 5.7.1 repealed by Ord. 14-02 (2014). Weapons loitering: Unlawful while carrying a concealed weapon (§ 4.6.02). Gang loitering warning: Officer must offer chance to disperse first. Large gathering threshold: 10+ persons can be declared a nuisance (§ 5.27.504).

A § 5.27.501 obstruction, like most Chapter 5.27 nuisance violations, is enforceable as a misdemeanor under § 1.2.01, punishable by up to a $1,000 fine, up to six months in jail, or both, unless charged as an infraction with escalating $100, $200, and $500 fines for repeat violations within a year. Gang loitering under § 5.27.509 carries the same misdemeanor penalty but requires officers to first give a dispersal warning; only a return within eight hours or a refusal to leave supports arrest or citation.

Jaywalking

Clovis bars pedestrians from crossing mid-block anywhere except at a crosswalk inside the Central Traffic District, downtown's core bounded by Seventh, Second, Pollasky and Hughes, and in any business district citywide. The City Engineer separately decides where crosswalks go and can post signs directing pedestrians into a specific one.

Key details: Ban zone: Central Traffic District and business districts. District boundary: 7th, 2nd, Pollasky and Hughes. Min. block for crosswalk: 400 feet. Crosswalk authority: City Engineer. Enforced by: Clovis Police Department.

A pedestrian who crosses mid-block outside a crosswalk inside the Central Traffic District or a business district is subject to citation by Clovis Police under this chapter's traffic-enforcement authority; violations of Chapter 4.5 default to infraction or misdemeanor treatment under the Municipal Code's general penalty provision, Section 1.2.01, unless a specific section states otherwise.

Public Alcohol Use

Clovis bans possessing an opened container of alcohol or drinking any alcoholic beverage in a park, playground, street, sidewalk, alley, or other publicly owned place open to the public, and extends the same ban to privately owned parks, streets, sidewalks, alleys, and parking lots that are open to the public. Municipal Code Section 5.8.02 makes a violation an infraction.

Key details: Governing section: Municipal Code § 5.8.02. Banned: open container/drinking in public places. Also covers: private lots/streets open to the public. Exceptions: licensed premises and recycling. Off-sale stores: must post Chief of Police-approved notices.

A violation is an infraction under Section 5.8.02(D), punishable under Section 1.2.01 of the Municipal Code: up to $100 for a first offense, up to $200 for a second offense of the same provision within a year, and up to $500 for each further offense within that year. Off-sale retailers that fail to post the required notice can also be cited.

Public Urination

Clovis Municipal Code § 5.27.506 makes it unlawful to urinate or defecate in any public place, or on private property, at a location not provided for that purpose. The ban applies citywide with no location or time exception written into the section.

Key details: Governing section: Clovis Muni. Code § 5.27.506. Scope: public places AND private property. Adopted: Ord. 14-02, eff. March 5, 2014. Enforcement: citation under Title 1, Ch. 2 & 7.

A violation of § 5.27.506 is enforceable as a Municipal Code infraction or misdemeanor under the general penalty provisions of Chapter 2 of Title 1, and the Police Department can issue an administrative citation under Chapter 7 of Title 1. Habitual occurrences tied to a specific property can trigger property-nuisance abatement under Chapters 28 and 29 of Title 5.

Loud Party Ordinance

A gathering of 10 or more people on public or private property that substantially disturbs a neighborhood's quiet enjoyment through unlawful conduct, such as excessive noise, public drunkenness, or serving alcohol to minors, is a declared nuisance under Clovis Municipal Code § 5.27.504, subject to City-ordered dispersal and citation.

Key details: Trigger group size: 10 or more persons. Governing section: Clovis Muni. Code § 5.27.504. Remedy: City order to disband gathering. Also enforced against owners: § 5.27.403 habitual nuisance.

An unruly gathering under § 5.27.504 can be ordered disbanded by police, and individual law violators, including for excessive noise, public drunkenness, or serving alcohol to minors, are subject to citation or arrest under applicable local and State law. Where the gathering recurs habitually on the same property, the owner can additionally face nuisance abatement and cost recovery under Chapters 28 and 29 of Title 5.

Skateboarding Rules

Clovis bars roller skates, skateboards, and coasters from every roadway citywide and from sidewalks within the business district under Municipal Code § 4.5.1350. Private property owners can also post signs banning the devices, and once posted, skating there becomes unlawful too. The rule dates to a 1965 ordinance, last amended in 1995.

Key details: Roadway skating: Banned citywide (§ 4.5.1350). Sidewalk skating: Banned only in the business district. Private property: Owner can post signs banning skating. Skate park gear: Helmet, elbow pads, knee pads required (§ 10.5.02). Skate park enforcement: Warning, then citations escalate (§ 10.5.08).

Skating on a roadway citywide, on a business-district sidewalk, or on posted private property violates § 4.5.1350 and is punishable under the Code's general penalty section, § 1.2.01, as a misdemeanor carrying up to a $1,000 fine and six months in jail, or as an infraction with escalating fines of $100, $200, and $500 for repeat violations within a year. At City skate parks, missing safety gear or riding after posted hours draws a warning on the first offense and administrative citations thereafter (§ 10.5.08).

The Bottom Line

Clovis is tougher than many cities when it comes to public conduct. Out of the 9 rules covered here, 2 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in Clovis, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

These rules come from Clovis's publicly available municipal code. For complete penalty schedules, exemption details, and answers to common questions, see the individual ordinance pages throughout this guide.