Janesville, WI Public Conduct: Public Urination (2026)
Key Facts
- Sections
- §§ 24-214 to 24-216
- Division
- Indecent Exposure, Public Nudity
- Covered areas
- Any public place incl. parks, streets, sidewalks
- Penalty
- $100 to $1,000 forfeiture per offense
- Cross-reference
- § 24-293(1)(u) names this 'public urination'
- Exemptions
- Breastfeeding, private residences/sleep rooms
Summary
In the City of Janesville, Section 24-215 of the Code of General Ordinances makes it unlawful to intentionally show bare buttocks, genitals or female nipples in a public place, defined by Section 24-214 to include streets, parks and other City property. The City's own Chronic Nuisance Premises ordinance, Section 24-293(1)(u), labels this offense 'indecent exposure and/or public urination,' the provision Janesville police cite for public urination complaints.
The term "public place" means upon any public property owned by or open to the general public, such as a public park, beach, playground, school ground, street, highway, sidewalk, alley, greenbelt, and other public place held open to the general public ... No person, in a public place, as defined herein, may intentionally or knowingly engage in the actual:(1)Showing or revealing of a human bare buttock, anus, perineum, anal region, anal or natal cleft or cleavage, pubic area, male genitals, testicle, female genitals, vulva, or female nipple, female areola, whether or not in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal, with less than a fully opaque covering;
Full Breakdown
Janesville does not have a stand-alone 'no urinating in public' ordinance. Instead, Chapter 24, Article II, Division 6 (Indecent Exposure, Public Nudity), Sections 24-214 through 24-216, does the work: Section 24-215 bars intentionally or knowingly showing a bare buttock, anus, pubic area, genitals or female nipple/areola in a public place, without regard to sexual arousal, and the City's own Chronic Nuisance Premises ordinance at Section 24-293(1)(u) confirms the connection by listing 'indecent exposure and/or public urination' together as a single nuisance-activity category defined by this division.
'Public place' under Section 24-214(c) reaches any public property open to the general public, including parks, sidewalks, streets, alleys and greenbelts, plus private property when the exposure happens without the owner's consent; it exempts private motel, hotel and residence sleeping rooms and mothers breastfeeding. Because Section 24-215 requires only that the exposure be intentional or knowing, not that it be for a sexual purpose, urinating in a park, alley or downtown sidewalk in view of others falls within the ban. Section 24-216 sets the penalty: a forfeiture of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 plus prosecution costs for each offense, with each incident and each day of a continuing violation counted separately, and the City may also seek an injunction against a repeat offender.
Violations & Fines
Violating Section 24-215 carries a forfeiture of $100 to $1,000 per offense under Section 24-216, plus court costs, with each incident and each day of a continuing violation counted separately. Nonpayment subjects the violator to the court's remedies for default, and the City can also seek an injunction against someone who repeatedly exposes themselves or urinates in public in violation of this division.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Janesville
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