Hanford, CA Public Conduct: Loitering Rules (2026)

020 defines "loitering" with a three-part reasonable-person test: the person must (a) lack a purpose legitimately connected with the business, activity or function of the premises, public way or area; (b) lack a bona fide intent to exercise a constitutional right; and (c) be causing a public inconvenience or annoyance. All three elements have to be present before the definition is met, so simply standing on a sidewalk without an obvious errand is not by itself enough. The actual violation requires a second step: the person must loiter on private property open for public use, a public sidewalk, or other public way, AND either refuse to comply with a lawful order from a police officer or from the owner, occupant or agent of the property to leave, or comply and then return within 48 hours and resume loitering under the same definition.

In other words, the ordinance targets the refusal to leave (or the quick return), not mere presence. Hanford enforces two related but distinct restrictions nearby in the code that a search for "loitering" in Hanford also turns up. 030, "Standing in roadways," separately bars any person from stopping, standing or loitering in a roadway or crosswalk except to avoid a traffic conflict or under a police officer's direction, with an exception for public officers, employees, or utility workers on duty. 72, "Median Island Safety," makes it unlawful to loiter, defined there as "standing or lingering on a median island without a permit or exception," without a Hanford Police Department-issued permit, which requires a fee set by council resolution, liability insurance, a safety vest, and a minimum age of 18. 020's general public-place loitering rule.