Fresno's Public Conduct: The Rules That Matter

Every city handles public conduct a little differently. In Fresno, California, there are 7 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.

Skateboarding Rules

Fresno Municipal Code § 14-1805 bans roller skating, skateboarding, and any metal-tread-wheel device on streets the city has designated as "mall streets": the pedestrian business corridors around the historic Fulton Mall. The ban runs the full length of each listed mall street, not just a plaza area.

Key details: Banned devices: Skates, skateboards, metal-tread wheels. Zone: Designated "mall streets" only. Governing section: FMC § 14-1805. Article: Ch. 14, Art. 18 - Mall traffic regs. Penalty: Infraction $100-$500 or misdemeanor.

Roller skating or riding a skateboard on a designated mall street violates Section 14-1805 and is prosecuted like any other Code violation under Section 1-304: an infraction with escalating fines of $100, $200, then $500 within a year, or a misdemeanor carrying up to $1,000 and a year in county jail if the City Attorney elects to charge it that way.

Compared to other cities, Fresno takes a harder line on skateboarding rules. The enforcement and penalty structure reflects that.

Loitering Rules

Fresno Municipal Code Sections 9-2501 and 9-2502 make it a misdemeanor to loiter in any public place, or any place visible from the public, in a manner and under circumstances manifesting an intent to solicit prostitution or engage in unlawful drug activity. Officers weigh specific statutory factors -- known-offender history, beckoning, lookout behavior, evasive conduct -- before an arrest holds up under either section.

Key details: Prostitution loitering penalty: Up to 6 months jail or $1,000 fine, or both. Drug loitering penalty: Misdemeanor under general FMC Ch. 1, Art. 3. Look-back window: Prior convictions count only within 2 years. Reaches private property: If generally visible from a public vantage point. Adopted: Ord. 81-133 (1981); drug section Ord. 93-66 (1993).

A Section 9-2501 conviction is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in county jail, a fine up to $1,000, or both, under subsection (c). Section 9-2502 has no separate punishment clause of its own, so drug-loitering charges fall back on the citywide general misdemeanor penalty in FMC Chapter 1, Article 3 -- the same default the code applies elsewhere in Article 25 to offenses lacking their own penalty subsection.

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

Loud Party Ordinance

Fresno's Social Host Ordinance, Municipal Code Article 30, makes it a misdemeanor to knowingly host or allow a party on private property under your control where anyone under 21 is served or consumes alcohol. A 'party' is any gathering of two or more people who aren't all members of the same household, and each emergency response to the same party is a separate offense.

Key details: Penalty: Misdemeanor: $1,000 fine, 6 months jail, or both. Party definition: 2+ people not all same household/family. Repeat calls: Each emergency response is a separate offense. Key exceptions: Parent/guardian service, religious ceremony, ABC-licensed premises. Adopted: Ord. 2007-16, eff. April 19, 2007.

Section 9-3008(a) makes a violation a misdemeanor punishable by a $1,000 fine, up to six months' imprisonment, or both. Because Section 9-3007 treats each emergency-services response to the same party as a separate incident, a host whose party draws police or fire crews more than once in a night faces that fine and jail exposure multiplied by the number of responses.

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

Outdoor Smoking Restrictions

Fresno's smoking ban is written for enclosed spaces, so parks and open patios aren't covered -- except at the city's two airports, where Section 10-1105(m) expressly extends the "public place" smoking prohibition to named open-air zones like terminal sidewalks and curb areas, regardless of whether they're enclosed.

Key details: Governing section: FMC § 10-1105(m). General "public place" scope: enclosed areas only, § 10-1103(g). Outdoor exception: FAT and FCH airport zones. Named airport zones: crosswalks, sidewalks, curb areas, airside. Extra authority: Aviation Director may add non-smoking areas.

Smoking within the airport zones named in Section 10-1105(m) -- terminal crosswalks, frontage sidewalks, loading/unloading curb areas, building-entrance surroundings, and the restricted airside area at FAT or FCH -- is a violation of the article's public-place smoking ban even though those areas are outdoors. Elsewhere outdoors, including city parks and restaurant patios, the smoking-pollution ordinance's enclosed-area definition does not apply, so it supplies no violation there.

If you are coming from a city with tighter rules, you will find Fresno gives residents more flexibility on outdoor smoking restrictions.

Public Urination

Fresno makes it 'unlawful and a public nuisance to urinate or defecate in public' under FMC Sec. 10-1702(c), which incorporates the citywide 'committing a nuisance' offense defined in Sec. 9-2512 as evacuating the bowels or bladder anywhere not provided for that purpose. Because the urination ban sits inside the Unlawful Camping article, a violation carries the same misdemeanor penalty as illegal camping.

Key details: Core prohibition: Urinating or defecating in public or private. Base offense: FMC Sec. 9-2512, since Ord. 1076. Cross-referenced by: FMC Sec. 10-1702(c), Unlawful Camping article. Penalty: Up to 1 year jail and/or $1,000 fine. Applies on: Public places and private property with others present.

A violation is prosecutable as a misdemeanor under Sec. 10-1703(a): up to one year in jail and/or a fine of up to $1,000 per violation (or the Master Fee Schedule amount), plus restitution for any property removal and storage costs. The City Attorney may also bring a civil nuisance-abatement action under Penal Code section 370 et seq.

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

Public Alcohol Use

Fresno Municipal Code Section 9-2503 bars drinking beer, wine or any intoxicating beverage on any street, sidewalk, alley, playground, or parking lot open to the general public. Restaurants with an encroachment permit may serve alcohol in a posted sidewalk seating area during business hours, and the Parks and Recreation Director can authorize drinking at a limited-duration mall-area event.

Key details: General rule: No drinking on streets, sidewalks, parks, public lots. Restaurant exception: Posted encroachment seating during business hours. Private-lot coverage: Only if owner requests Police Chief designation. Special events: Parks Director may authorize in mall areas. Enforcement: Defaults to FMC Ch. 1, Art. 3 general penalty.

Section 9-2503 does not print its own penalty subsection, so a violation is enforced as an infraction or misdemeanor under the citywide general penalty provision, FMC Chapter 1, Article 3 -- the same default the city applies to other Chapter 9 conduct offenses that lack a dedicated punishment clause, such as the gambling and gasoline-sale prohibitions in the same article.

Public Marijuana Use

Fresno's Smoking Pollution Control Ordinance defines "smoking" to include any lighted or heated plant product intended for inhalation, natural or synthetic, and Section 10-1105 bans that smoking in all enclosed public places -- stores, restaurants, restaurants, theaters, health facilities and more -- reaching cannabis smoking as squarely as tobacco.

Key details: Governing sections: FMC §§ 10-1103(l), 10-1105. "Smoking" definition: includes any plant product for inhalation. Where banned: all enclosed public places, Sec. 10-1105. Exempt areas: bars, tobacco shops, private residences. Adopted: Ord. 87-152, eff. 12-4-87.

Smoking -- including cannabis, under the Section 10-1103(l) definition -- in any enclosed public place listed in Section 10-1105 violates the Smoking Pollution Control Ordinance. The ordinance's general violation and enforcement provisions apply to a person who smokes in a prohibited area, and an operator who fails to post or enforce the required smoking/non-smoking designations under Sections 10-1106 through 10-1109 is separately subject to the article's enforcement.

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

The Bottom Line

Fresno is tougher than many cities when it comes to public conduct. Out of the 7 rules covered here, 5 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in Fresno, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

This guide is based on Fresno's current municipal code. Local rules can and do change, so check the individual ordinance pages for the latest details, penalties, and FAQs.