Las Cruces, NM Public Conduct: Loitering Rules (2026)

Section 21-63 of the Code of Ordinances is a traffic-safety rule aimed at preventing dangers to people and property, traffic delays, and interference with traffic flow, not a general anti-loitering law for sidewalks or storefronts. It is unlawful to stand or loiter on a street or highway in a way that causes the person to enter the traveled portion of a road posted 30 mph or higher, or that positions the person so vehicles cannot safely pull into a legal parking area. Standing or loitering on any interstate highway, including its entrances and exits, is banned outright regardless of speed limit.

The section also bars standing, loitering, accessing, using, occupying, assembling or congregating on any median along a road posted 30 mph or higher unless that median has a flat area at least four feet in diameter, a rule the section explains is necessary because center medians are engineered for specific traffic-flow purposes and any delay there can create dangerous conditions. 'Traveled portion' is defined as the part of the road normally used by moving vehicle traffic. Violations fall under Section 21-64's penalty for the whole prohibited-solicitation article: a fine of up to $500, imprisonment up to 90 days, or both, and Section 21-64 specifically requires that a person found violating Section 21-63 be removed from the area immediately, on top of any fine or jail time.