Fremont, CA Public Conduct: Public Urination (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Fremont Municipal Code Sec. 9.50.120
- Where prohibited
- Public property or property visible/open to public
- Restroom use
- Exempt if a lawful sanitary facility
- Medical exception
- Exempt with a verified medical condition
- Maximum misdemeanor penalty
- $1,000 fine and/or 6 months jail
- Infraction fines
- $100 / $200 / $500 per conviction count
Summary
Fremont bans depositing human urine or feces on public property or on private property that is open to the public or visible from it. Violators face misdemeanor charges under Municipal Code Sec. 9.50.120, with exceptions for lawful restroom use and verified medical conditions.
(a) It is unlawful for any person to deposit human urine or feces on any publicly owned or maintained property, or on any private property open to the public or exposed to public view. (b) This section shall not apply to the following. (1) Urinating or defecating in any restroom or other lawfully maintained facility designed for the sanitary disposal of human waste. (2) Any person who violates this section due to a verified medical condition. (c) Violation of this section is a misdemeanor that may be charged as set forth in Section 1.15.010(b).
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 02-2026, passed May 5, 2026).
Full Breakdown
Fremont Municipal Code Sec. 50 (Miscellaneous Crimes), makes it unlawful for any person to deposit human urine or feces on publicly owned or maintained property, or on private property that is open to the public or exposed to public view. The prohibition applies broadly across the city and is not limited to any single district or park, and it covers both act (urinating or defecating) and any resulting deposit visible to the public. The section carves out two specific exceptions: using a restroom or other lawfully maintained facility designed for sanitary disposal of human waste is not a violation, and neither is conduct that results from a verified medical condition, meaning a person can raise medical necessity as a defense if the deposit was unavoidable.
This section sits in the same chapter as Fremont's rules on drinking in public parks (Sec. 100) and in private parking lots open to the public (Sec. 110), reflecting a broader public-order scheme enforced by the police department and, for park-specific conduct, park rangers. Because the ordinance was adopted by Ordinance 2530 in 2004 and carried forward from the 1990 Code Sec. 50.
Violations & Fines
A violation of Sec. 9.50.120 is a misdemeanor that may be charged as set forth in Sec. 1.15.010(b), giving the enforcing officer discretion to prosecute it instead as an infraction. If charged as a misdemeanor, the maximum penalty under Sec. 1.15.020(a) is a $1,000 fine, up to six months in county jail, or both. If reduced to an infraction, fines run $100 for a first conviction, $200 for a second within a year, and $500 for a third or later conviction within that year.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Fremont
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