Saint Paul, MN Public Conduct: Loitering Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Citation
- Saint Paul Legislative Code § 280.06
- Penalty
- Up to $1,000 fine or 90 days jail
- Enforced by
- Saint Paul Police Department
- Related section
- § 272.03 loitering for prostitution/narcotics
- Chapter
- Chapter 280, Certain Miscellaneous Misdemeanors
Summary
Saint Paul Legislative Code § 280.06 makes it a misdemeanor to loiter on city streets after midnight while lying in wait, hiding, or consorting with thieves, prostitutes, or "other questionable characters." Saint Paul police enforce it citywide alongside the narrower § 272.03 loitering-for-vice statute.
No person shall loiter about the streets after midnight and lie in wait or concealment in said City of Saint Paul, or consort with thieves, prostitutes or other questionable characters.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 133 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
07 sleeping or hiding in box cars and barns, the drafters treated late-night loitering as one strand of a broader nuisance-and-suspicious-conduct chapter rather than a stand-alone anti-vagrancy law. 05 list factual circumstances, repeated beckoning to passersby, acting as a lookout, furtive exchanges of currency, officers may use to prove that intent. 05: a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $1,000 fine, 90 days in jail, or both. Saint Paul police make these stops, and prosecution runs through the city attorney's office in Ramsey County District Court. 05) or the vice-loitering statute rather than charge it alone.
Violations & Fines
Violating § 280.06 is a misdemeanor under the citywide penalty section, § 1.05: up to a $1,000 fine, 90 days in jail, or both, regardless of any lesser penalty printed elsewhere in the code. Saint Paul police issue the citation and the case is prosecuted by the city attorney in Ramsey County District Court.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is loitering after midnight illegal in Saint Paul even if I'm not doing anything else wrong?
What's the difference between § 280.06 and § 272.03?
What happens if I'm convicted under § 280.06?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Saint Paul
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