Aurora Residents Face Fines For Gathering In Public

AURORA, IL — Aurora aldermen unanimously approved an ordinance giving police officers the authority to fine residents for gathering in public. City residents who flout Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s stay-at-home order could face a fine between $50 and $500 for disorderly conduct.

By a 12-0 vote Tuesday, the Aurora City Council expanded the definition of disorderly conduct to include the “knowing disregard” of stay-at-home orders issued by the governor or public health officials. Disorderly conduct is a misdemeanor-one offense, the least severe charge allowed under Aurora city code, Aurora’s corporation counsel Rick Veenstra said during the council’s virtual meeting on Facebook Live.

Aurora Business Owners: Open or Closed? Let Local Customers Know

Pritzker’s stay-at-home order is meant to be enforced through voluntary compliance, Veenstra said, but the expanded disorderly conduct ordinance is a “middle-ground approach that gives us an additional option” when residents who aren’t complying with the order haven’t done anything criminal.

However, Veenstra stressed the Aurora Police Department “is very strongly committed to working extraordinarily hard to secure that voluntary compliance.”

Illinois Coronavirus Update April 17— Don't miss updates about precautions in the Aurora area as they are announced — Sign up for Patch news alerts and newsletters.

Alderman Carl Franco, who represents the city’s fifth ward, asked if officers could now use the ordinance to crack down on panhandling, something he called a “public health issue”

“I would consider that reckless conduct. Is that something we can mitigate now? I just think that’s a public health issue, and I was shocked that anybody would do it,” Franco said.

Aurora Man Shot At Car Driving On His Block: Police

Aurora Paramedics, Firefighters Receive 3D-Printed Face Shields

Veenstra shot down Franco’s idea and said people have a constitutional right to ask others for money and help.

“The courts have held that there is a right to panhandle, and I would not see the use of this ordinance or the ‘reckless conduct’ as a way to prevent that from happening,” Veenstra said.