Breach of the peace is a term that includes disorderly conduct but is broader in its scope. Any act so different from the customs of a community that it disturbs or offends people is likely to be regarded as a breach of the peace. It is not a breach of the peace for a peddler to push a cart of vegetables through the street at noon, ringing a bell and shouting his or her wares. The same act at 4 a.m. would be a breach of the peace almost anywhere, because it would disturb many people who were then asleep.
When someone is accused of a breach of the peace, the court may set down some specific acts that will be regarded as a breach of the peace if the accused does them again. The accused is then “bound over to keep the peace.” The court may ask the accused to put up a sum of money called a peace bond. The money will be forfeited if the accused does any of the specific acts.
The term breach of the peace began in the days when the king was supreme in England. It was held that the king had a right to peace within his realm. Whenever any crime was committed against the royal laws, the offender was arrested for disturbing “the king’s peace” and was tried before a justice of the peace. Today, a serious crime is not spoken of as a breach of the peace. The term is used only for offenses that invade the right of people to live in peace and quiet, and that are not covered by any other statute.
