Macon-Bibb County, GA Public Conduct: Loitering Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Code Sec. 16-23, adopted 2022
- Standard
- Justifiable alarm for safety of persons/property
- Store curfew
- Vice/Food Mart, 11:05 p.m.-6:00 a.m.
- Officer duty
- Must offer chance to identify/explain first
- Penalty
- General penalty, Code Sec. 1-6
Summary
Macon-Bibb County makes it a crime to loiter or prowl "in a place, at a time or in a manner not usual for law abiding individuals" when circumstances create justifiable alarm, under County Code Sec. 16-23. The section also bars non-employees from lingering at a Vice Mart or Food Mart between 11:05 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.
(a)Offense defined. A person commits the offense of loitering or prowling when one is in a place, at a time or in a manner not usual for law abiding individuals under circumstances that warrant a justifiable and reasonable alarm or immediate concern for the safety of persons or property in the vicinity. Any person other than an Owner, Manager, or Employee of a Vice Mart or Food Mart, as those terms are defined in Section 16-100 of this Code, who is present on the Premises of such Vice Mart or Food Mart between the hours of 11:05 P.M. and 6:00 A.M. on longer than a transient basis is guilty of the offense of loitering or prowling.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Comprehensive Land Development Resolution: Supplement 4 | Code of Ordinances: Supplement 20).
Full Breakdown
" Subsection (b) builds in a due-process check before any arrest: officers must weigh flight, refusal to identify, or efforts to conceal oneself or an object as relevant circumstances, but "unless flight by the person or other circumstances makes it impractical," an officer must first give the person "an opportunity to dispel any alarm" by asking the person to identify himself and explain his presence. " Subsection (c) makes a conviction "a violation of this section" punishable under the Code's general penalty section. The section was adopted by Ordinance No. O-22-0029 in June 2022.
Violations & Fines
A conviction under Section 16-23(c) is punished "as provided in the general penalty section of this Code," meaning Municipal Court sentencing under Section 1-6. No conviction is valid, however, if the arresting officer skipped the required identification opportunity, or if the loiterer's explanation at trial was true and would have resolved the officer's alarm.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes loitering illegal in Macon-Bibb County?
Is there a curfew for convenience stores in Macon-Bibb County?
Can I fight a loitering charge by explaining myself to police?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Macon-Bibb County
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