Public urination laws make it a crime for a person to urinate in a public space. Public urination laws are commonly codified with other, more serious sexual misconduct violations. Though public urination is usually not as serious as other sexual misconduct, some jurisdictions require those convicted of public urination to register as sex offenders.
Public urination is often prosecuted through one of two avenues. The first type of prosecution flows through a jurisdiction’s specific public urination statute that specifically makes public urination a crime. The second type is initiated through disorderly conduct, disturbing the peace or public nuisance statutes.
Public urination can be used as a lesser or included offense when public masturbation is more difficult to prove. In addition to protecting the public from lewdness, public urination laws are aimed at promoting public health.