Royal Oak, MI Public Conduct: Loud Party Ordinance (2026)

Adopted March 3, 1986 by Ordinance No. 86-4 and codified at City Code §§ 430-13 through 430-17, the Open Party Ordinance targets the person who controls the location where underage drinking or drug use happens, not just the minors themselves. "Control" is defined broadly as any form of regulation or dominion, including a mere possessory right, so a tenant, party host, or anyone temporarily in charge of a residence or rental facility can be charged even if they do not own the property. A "residence" reaches beyond a single-family home to include an apartment, condominium, other dwelling unit, its curtilage, and even a hotel or motel room; a "rental facility" covers a hall, auditorium, or social, fraternal, or service club.

The offense requires knowledge: the person in control must know that alcohol or a drug is being illegally possessed or consumed by a minor at the gathering. "Minor" is tied to Michigan's alcohol-possession age law, and "drug" is tied to the state's controlled-substance schedules. Section 430-16 carves out an exception for legally protected religious observances and legally protected educational activities. The Royal Oak Police Department investigates open-party complaints, and because the ordinance predates the City's later civil-infraction framework, a conviction here is a criminal misdemeanor rather than a municipal civil infraction.