A Closer Look at Disorderly Conduct After Georgia Man Indicted

Renardo Lewis was indicted in Cobb County for a situation that occurred at a local IHOP on March 31. Lewis was charged and indicted on the following charges:

• Disorderly Conduct in Georgia
• Public Drunk in Georgia
• Obstruction in Georgia

According to reports, Lewis got into a disagreement with IHOP employees which led to the police being called. This led to what has been reported as more struggle.

As a Georgia DUI Lawyer, I will focus on the offense of disorderly conduct in today's post.

Disorderly Conduct in Georgia

Georgia Law defines disorderly conduct in O.C.G.A. §16-11-39 as:

A person commits the offense of disorderly conduct when such person commits any of the following:

(1) Acts in a violent or tumultuous manner toward another person whereby such person is placed in reasonable fear of the safety of such person's life, limb, or health;

(2) Acts in a violent or tumultuous manner toward another person whereby the property of such person is placed in danger of being damaged or destroyed;

(3) Without provocation, uses to or of another person in such other person's presence, opprobrious or abusive words which by their very utterance tend to incite to an immediate breach of the peace, that is to say, words which as a matter of common knowledge and under ordinary circumstances will, when used to or of another person in such other person's presence, naturally tend to provoke violent resentment, that is, words commonly called "fighting words"; or

(4) Without provocation, uses obscene and vulgar or profane language in the presence of or by telephone to a person under the age of 14 years which threatens an immediate breach of the peace.

Disorderly conduct is classified as a misdemeanor offense. This means that if convicted of committing disorderly conduct in the state of Georgia, then the penalties can include up to $1,000 in fines and up to 12 months in jail.

Practice Note

Disorderly conduct is considered an offense against the public order, privacy, or safety - other crimes in this category are treason, rioting, and fighting. It is also a very commonly charged offense. As a Georgia DUI Attorney, I refer to this offense as a catch all law.

I refer to the offense in this way because disorderly conduct is frequently used by officers when confronted with a person they wish to detain whether for the purposes of public safety or to prevent them from further interfering with an investigation or to simply “teach a lesson.”

Bottom line - it is used by officers when they don't like the conduct of a person. It's a catchall because most of the time the person charged hasn't actually broken any law. If you or a loved one has been arrested for a serious offense such as a DUI in Georgia, contact our offices today.