The Bruskarian Public Order Act

Article I – Purpose and Scope

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This Act establishes the laws governing public order and conduct within the territories of the Grand Duchy of Bruskaria.

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The purpose of this Act is to preserve public safety and peace while respecting the lawful freedoms and activities of citizens and other persons.

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This Act applies to all citizens, residents, visitors, government personnel, and other persons present within Bruskaria, except where another Act expressly provides otherwise.

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Nothing in this Act shall prohibit peaceful, lawful, and non-disruptive conduct merely because such conduct is considered unusual, unpopular, offensive, or disagreeable by another person.

Article II – Disturbance of the Peace

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No person shall intentionally or recklessly cause a substantial and unreasonable disturbance in a public place.

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A disturbance of the peace may include:

A. Excessive or deliberately disruptive noise;
B. Repeated shouting or screaming without reasonable cause;
C. Fighting or encouraging an immediate public fight;
D. Deliberately causing panic or serious public disruption;
E. Repeatedly interfering with the lawful activities of other persons; or
F. Other comparable conduct substantially disturbing public peace.

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Ordinary conversation, music at a reasonable volume, celebrations, demonstrations, sporting activities, construction, emergency activity, and other reasonable uses of public space shall not constitute a disturbance merely because they produce noise.

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The circumstances, location, duration, time, purpose, and severity of the conduct shall be considered when determining whether a disturbance is unreasonable.

Article III – Disorderly Conduct

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No person shall intentionally engage in violent, threatening, or seriously disruptive behaviour in a public place without lawful justification.

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Disorderly conduct may include:

A. Starting or participating in an unlawful physical fight;
B. Throwing objects at persons or property in a manner likely to cause injury or damage;
C. Deliberately provoking immediate violence;
D. Recklessly creating a substantial danger to persons nearby; or
E. Seriously interfering with the safe and ordinary use of a public place.

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A person acting reasonably in self-defence or defence of another person shall not be considered to have committed disorderly conduct solely because force was used.

Article IV – Harassment and Intimidation

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No person shall repeatedly and intentionally harass another person through conduct reasonably likely to cause substantial fear, distress, or intimidation.

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Harassment may include:

A. Repeatedly following another person without legitimate reason;
B. Repeated unwanted communication after a clear request to cease;
C. Deliberately and repeatedly interfering with another person's lawful activities;
D. Credible threats of unlawful harm; or
E. Coordinated conduct intended to intimidate or seriously distress another person.

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Criticism, disagreement, satire, lawful protest, or a single minor disagreement shall not by itself constitute harassment.

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Nothing in this Article shall prohibit reasonable communication undertaken for lawful governmental, legal, emergency, educational, employment, or administrative purposes.

Article V – Threatening Conduct

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No person shall knowingly communicate a credible threat to unlawfully kill, seriously injure, or otherwise inflict substantial unlawful harm upon another person.

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When determining whether a statement constitutes a credible threat, consideration shall be given to its context, apparent intent, specificity, circumstances, and whether a reasonable person would understand it as a genuine expression of intended harm.

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Jokes, satire, fictional statements, obvious exaggerations, and statements that cannot reasonably be interpreted as genuine threats shall not constitute an offence under this Article.

Article VI – Public Intoxication

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Being intoxicated in a public place shall not by itself constitute an offence.

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An intoxicated person commits an offence where their behaviour:

A. Creates a substantial danger to themselves or another person;
B. Results in serious disorderly conduct;
C. Unreasonably prevents others from using a public place;
D. Involves harassment, violence, or credible threats; or
E. Otherwise constitutes an offence under Bruskarian law.

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Where reasonably possible, an intoxicated person presenting primarily a danger to themselves should be assisted or removed to a safe location rather than punished solely because of their intoxication.

Article VII – Obstruction of Public Areas

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No person shall intentionally and without reasonable justification substantially obstruct a public road, pathway, entrance, exit, or other area intended for public passage.

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Temporary obstruction caused by emergencies, maintenance, construction, authorized events, demonstrations, government activity, loading or unloading, or other reasonable purposes shall not constitute an offence where appropriate precautions are taken.

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No person shall knowingly obstruct an emergency exit or intentionally prevent emergency personnel from reaching a person or location requiring assistance.

Article VIII – Vandalism and Damage to Public Property

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No person shall intentionally damage, destroy, deface, or render unusable property belonging to the State or intended for public use without lawful authorization.

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Vandalism may include:

A. Deliberately breaking public fixtures;
B. Unauthorized painting, marking, or defacement of public property;
C. Damaging signs, monuments, infrastructure, or government property;
D. Deliberately damaging plants, landscaping, or other maintained public features; or
E. Intentionally interfering with the normal operation of public equipment.

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A person responsible for vandalism may, in addition to any criminal penalty, be required to compensate the lawful owner for reasonable repair, cleaning, or replacement costs.

Article IX – Littering and Public Cleanliness

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No person shall intentionally discard rubbish, waste, or other unwanted material in a public place except within an appropriate waste receptacle or other designated location.

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A person who accidentally drops or releases waste shall make a reasonable effort to retrieve and properly dispose of it where doing so is safe and practicable.

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Dumping substantial quantities of waste on public or private land without authorization is prohibited.

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Waste disposal undertaken in accordance with lawful government or sanitation procedures shall not constitute an offence under this Article.

Article X – Public Events and Gatherings

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Persons have the right to peacefully assemble, meet, demonstrate, celebrate, and participate in other lawful gatherings.

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A public gathering shall not be prohibited merely because its participants express unpopular, controversial, or critical opinions.

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Participants remain subject to generally applicable laws concerning violence, property damage, credible threats, obstruction, and other unlawful conduct.

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Government authorities may establish reasonable temporary safety measures for large gatherings where necessary to protect participants, the public, property, or emergency access.

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Such measures shall not be used solely for the purpose of suppressing lawful criticism or peaceful expression.

Article XI – Compliance with Lawful Police Directions

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An authorized law-enforcement officer may issue a reasonable direction to a person where necessary to:

A. Prevent imminent injury or serious disorder;
B. Protect a crime scene or emergency area;
C. Restore access to an unlawfully obstructed location;
D. Separate persons involved in a violent confrontation;
E. Protect public or private property from imminent damage; or
F. Carry out another lawful law-enforcement duty.

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A person shall comply with a lawful and reasonable direction issued under this Article.

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A law-enforcement officer shall not issue an order solely for the purpose of intimidating, humiliating, punishing, or unlawfully silencing a person.

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Refusal to obey an unlawful order shall not constitute an offence under this Article.

Article XII – Removal from Public Areas

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An authorized law-enforcement officer may temporarily require a person to leave a specific public area where that person's continued presence creates an immediate and substantial risk of violence, serious disorder, obstruction, or harm.

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Any order to leave shall be limited to the area and duration reasonably necessary to address the circumstances.

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A person shall not be permanently prohibited from an ordinary public area without separate lawful authority.

Article XIII – False Reports and Public Alarms

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No person shall knowingly make a false report of a crime, fire, medical emergency, attack, disaster, or other serious emergency with the intention of causing an unnecessary emergency response or substantial public alarm.

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A person who makes an inaccurate report while genuinely believing the reported emergency to be real shall not commit an offence solely because the information later proves incorrect.

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No person shall knowingly activate an emergency alarm without reasonable cause, except for lawful testing, maintenance, training, or other authorized purposes.

Article XIV – Interference with Emergency and Government Services

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No person shall intentionally and substantially interfere with police, medical, firefighting, rescue, or other emergency personnel while they are performing lawful duties.

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No person shall knowingly damage, obstruct, or unlawfully interfere with equipment reasonably necessary for an emergency response.

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Merely observing, recording, criticizing, or questioning government personnel from a lawful position shall not constitute interference unless the person's conduct substantially obstructs the performance of lawful duties.

Article XV – Penalties

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Minor violations of this Act may be punished by a warning, reasonable fine, removal from a specific location, or an order to remedy damage or disruption caused by the offender.

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Repeated or serious violations involving violence, credible threats, substantial property damage, deliberate emergency interference, or significant danger to the public may result in larger fines or imprisonment as permitted by Bruskarian law.

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Where an offence causes measurable property damage or financial loss, a court may order reasonable compensation or restitution in addition to another lawful penalty.

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Penalties imposed under this Act shall be proportionate to the offender's intent, conduct, circumstances, harm caused, danger created, and previous relevant offences.

Article XVI – Enforcement

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The National Security Corps and other authorized Bruskarian law-enforcement bodies may enforce this Act within their respective jurisdictions.

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Law-enforcement authorities shall, where reasonably appropriate, seek voluntary compliance before using coercive enforcement measures for minor public-order violations.

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Nothing in this Act grants law-enforcement personnel authority exceeding that provided by the Constitution or other Bruskarian law.

Article XVII – Final Provisions

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The Ministry of Law shall be the principal ministry responsible for the legal interpretation and administration of this Act.

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Nothing in this Act shall supersede the Constitution of the Grand Duchy of Bruskaria.

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Where another Act establishes a more specific rule concerning conduct regulated by this Act, the more specific provision shall apply to the extent of any conflict.

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This Act shall enter into force upon its lawful enactment and promulgation.