Canton, OH Public Conduct: Loud Party Ordinance (2026)

Section 509.01 traces to the 1964 Code, Section 507.45, and sits at the top of Chapter 509, Disorderly Conduct and Peace Disturbance, ahead of the intoxication offense in Section 509.02 and the specific loud-noise catalogue in Section 509.03. Its language reaches anyone "keeping or occupying any building, or part thereof," which covers homeowners, tenants, and anyone else with control of the space where a party happens, whether or not that person personally made noise. The prohibited conduct is broad by design: riotous, noisy, or disorderly persons who "frequent" or "resort" to the property, plus boisterous, noisy, indecent, or disorderly conduct occurring "therein or thereabouts" that is offensive or tends to disturb the public peace and quiet.

Because the standard turns on effect on the neighborhood rather than a decibel reading, Canton Police can cite a host under this section even where the more technical noise-amplification rules in Section 509.04 would not apply, such as a crowd shouting or fighting rather than a stereo running. This makes Section 509.01 the city's primary host-liability tool for out-of-control gatherings, distinct from the noise-source and decibel provisions that follow it in the same chapter. A violation is a misdemeanor of the fourth degree under subsection (b), and the offense applies to the keeper or occupant regardless of whether that person is also the source of the disturbance.