Is It Actually Illegal To Loiter In Arizona?

Some of my fondest memories have been made sitting around somewhere in public with my best friends, just chatting about our lives with the hustle and bustle of the city around us.

Despite good intentions, Arizona loves to crack down on this, but is it actually illegal?

What is Loitering?

If you've ever looked around a public place, you've likely seen a sign that says "NO LOITERING". In layman's terms, this means that you're not allowed to simply hang out in these marked places.

While many businesses and cities do not enforce this fully, it is still technically within their boundaries to evict someone from the area if they are loitering with no intent whatsoever, but does this still count in Arizona?

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Loitering in Arizona

Every state has their own set of rules when it comes to loitering, and luckily, Arizona is more lenient than most. There are still rules against loitering, but only to deter actual wrongdoers. These include people actively disrupting the peace, actively gambling, or those who have been asked to leave a property and refuse to.

These all fall as Class 3 Misdemeanors, but there is one other classification that's a tad more serious. That would be loitering at schools with no reason to be there, such as picking up a child or being enrolled in classes. If you refuse to leave after being requested to, you'll be hit with a Class 1 Misdemeanor, punishable by 6 months in prison and a $6,500 fine. As long as you don't fall under these categories, you should be free to enjoy your time no matter where, but if asked to leave, it's typically a smart idea to get out.

[Arizona Legislature]