Columbus, IN Public Conduct: Loitering Rules (2026)

Section 9.12.010 of the Columbus Municipal Code is the loitering provision of the City of Columbus, Indiana, and its reach is narrow. It does not ban standing or waiting in public in general. It makes it unlawful to loiter or remain in a public place in a manner and under circumstances manifesting the purpose of engaging or soliciting another person to engage in sexual activity.

The code lists the circumstances that can be considered: the person is a known prostitute or panderer, repeatedly beckons to, stops, or attempts to stop passersby, engages passersby in conversation, or repeatedly stops or attempts to stop motor vehicle operators by hailing, waving of arms, or any other bodily gestures. Loitering is defined as remaining idle in essentially one place, including spending time idly, loafing, or walking about aimlessly. A known prostitute or panderer is a person who, within one year before the arrest or citation, has to the arresting officer's knowledge been convicted of a city ordinance or Indiana statute on prostitution, patronizing a prostitute, or promoting prostitution. Public place means an area, publicly owned or open to the public, where offenses relating to sexual conduct are known to have been committed. Sexual activity is tied to Indiana Code 35-45-4-2, 35-45-4-3, and 35-45-4-4.

The ordinance carries a built-in safeguard. No arrest is made and no citation is issued unless the arresting officer, by direct demand, first affords the person an opportunity to explain the conduct. No one can be convicted if the officer skipped that step, or if it appears at trial that the explanation offered was true and disclosed a lawful purpose.

The Columbus Police Department makes the arrests and issues the citations. Other conduct that blocks or disturbs public places falls under other chapters, such as the noise rules in Chapter 8.28.