Sterling Heights, MI Public Conduct: Aggressive Panhandling (2026)

" The ordinance defines PUBLIC PLACE broadly at § 35-15 as "any place to which the general public has access to for business, entertainment or other lawful purpose," expressly including shopping malls, shops, restaurants, taverns, and public grounds, areas or parks. Unlike ordinances elsewhere that single out coercive, threatening or repeated solicitation as "aggressive panhandling," § 35-16(B)(8) does not carve out an aggressive tier: the plain text criminalizes being "found begging" at all, with no separate definition of aggression, proximity to ATMs, or nighttime solicitation.

public speaking or other lawful means of expressing public opinion," but that protection sits in a different subsection, § 35-16(N), and does not extend to begging itself. No dollar or imprisonment figure appears inside § 35-16 for a first violation of subsection (B); the offense instead draws its penalty from the Code's general penalty provision, § 1-9(A), which makes any misdemeanor violation of the Code punishable by a fine of not more than $500, imprisonment not to exceed 93 days, or both. Sterling Heights Police Department officers issue the citation; the person found begging is prosecuted through the district court that serves the city.