Public Urination/Defecation

To be charged with public urination or defecation in Columbus, you must have urinated or defecated on any of the following:

• A sidewalk, street, park, alley or yard that’s publicly owned or open for public use
• A wall, floor, doorway, hall, stairway, passageway or anywhere else not designed to be used as a bathroom in a building or structure that’s publicly owned or open for public use
• Anywhere on private property that’s not designed to be used as a bathroom

Nearly every day in central Ohio people are charged with public urination or defecation. In our experience, the Columbus Criminal defense team usually sees public urination or defecation charges related to the use of alcohol. This is especially true during OSU football season, where numerous tailgaters are charged every Saturday.

Penalties for Public Urination/Defecation in Ohio

Depending on your prior record, a public urination or defecation charge can range from a minor misdemeanor, punishable by up to a $150 fine to a third degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 60 days in jail.

If you are convicted of public urination or defecation, additional potential issues include:

•  Maintaining your current employment
•  Issues with your college or university
•  Difficulty getting a good job in the future
•  Difficulty and possible denial in immigration and naturalization proceedings

Simply put, if you are convicted of public urination or defecation it could remain on your criminal background for the rest of your life. This is an embarrassing offense to have on your criminal background for the rest of your life. Therefore, it is critical that you to give your public urination or defecation charge the level of importance it deserves.

The Columbus Criminal Defense team takes an aggressive and comprehensive approach when representing clients charged with public urination or defecation. First and foremost, we will figure out what mistakes the police or detectives made during their investigation, whether the criminal complaint is proper any other legal issues that can be raised on your behalf.

We do this by requesting discovery from the prosecutor. The discovery will generally consist of police reports, additional investigative notes, witness statements and potentially video or audio. As our client, you will receive a copy of everything received from the prosecutor for your review

Based on the legal weaknesses in the State of Ohio’s case and any other mitigating factors, we will negotiate the best possible plea available with the prosecutor for you to consider in resolving your case.

If your case cannot be resolved satisfactorily with a plea, it would then proceed to a motion hearing (a hearing where the judge issues a ruling on an evidentiary issue) or a trial to the judge or jury, depending on the circumstances.

For nearly ten years, the Columbus Criminal Defense team has successfully represented clients charged with public urination or defecation. That extensive previous experience will enable us to better help you.

Are you in trouble? Contact us.

If you’ve been charged with public urination or defecation, it’s important to know what you’re up against. If you have any questions left unanswered by this page, or if you need a competent, experienced criminal defense attorney to fight for you in court, please contact us at (614) 500-3836 or via email at advice@columbuscriminalattorney.com.