What is prohibited camping under PC § 48.05?
Texas Penal Code § 48.05 makes it a Class C misdemeanor to intentionally or knowingly camp in a public place without the effective consent of the officer or agency that manages it. Added by H.B. 1925, it took effect September 1, 2021 and applies statewide.
Texas created a statewide public camping ban in 2021. Before that year, whether an encampment on a sidewalk or in a park could be cited depended entirely on local ordinances, and Austin had drawn statewide attention by repealing its own ban in 2019. The Legislature responded with House Bill 1925, which added Penal Code § 48.05 and made public camping a criminal offense everywhere in the state, effective September 1, 2021.
The offense itself reads narrowly. A person commits prohibited camping if the person intentionally or knowingly camps in a public place without the effective consent of the officer or agency that has the legal duty or authority to manage that place. Each of those phrases carries weight, and each is a place where a defense can be built.
- "Camp" is statutorily defined — § 48.05(a)
- To "camp" means to reside temporarily in a place with shelter, and "shelter" is defined broadly to include a tent, tarpaulin, lean-to, sleeping bag, bedroll, blankets, or any temporary, semipermanent, or permanent structure. That definition matters: a person who sits on a bench for an afternoon, or who pauses to rest without setting up any shelter, is not "camping" within the meaning of the statute. The line between resting and residing is exactly the kind of factual question a defense attorney presses.
- "Public place" borrows the broad § 1.07(a)(40) definition
- "Public place" is not defined inside § 48.05, so courts use the general definition in Penal Code § 1.07(a)(40) — any place to which the public or a substantial group of the public has access, including streets, highways, and the common areas of buildings. Texas appellate courts have repeatedly described that definition as broad and open-ended. In Baumgart v. State, 533 S.W.3d 380 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2015), the court reaffirmed that the definition "is cast in broad language" and "is open-ended and leaves discretion to the courts to expand its parameters where appropriate."
- "Without effective consent" is the contested element
- The statute does not punish being in a public place; it punishes being there without the consent of the officer or agency with legal authority to manage the place. Because the "public place" term is so broad, the more productive fight in a camping case is usually not whether the location was public, but whether the accused had consent to be there and whether the officer followed the statute's own procedure.
- Penalty under § 12.23 — Class C misdemeanor range
- Conviction carries a fine of up to $500 under Penal Code § 12.23 and no confinement. The citation is filed in a municipal court or justice of the peace court rather than a county criminal court. Despite the absence of jail exposure, a conviction is a public record that can appear on background checks, so the disposition still matters.
The structural simplicity of § 48.05 masks the analytical depth of most contested citations. The State frequently overlooks one of two things: (1) whether the accused actually lacked the managing authority's consent, or (2) whether the conduct met the statute's own definition of "camping" rather than merely being present in a public space. Each is a fact-bound question, and each gives the defense room to argue for dismissal, for a deferred disposition, or for acquittal at trial.
Elements the State must prove
To convict under § 48.05, the State must prove every element beyond a reasonable doubt: identity, an intentional or knowing mental state, residing temporarily with shelter, a public place under § 1.07(a)(40), and the lack of effective consent. Read element by element, the charge has more moving parts than a typical fine-only ticket.
To convict under § 48.05, the prosecution must prove every element beyond a reasonable doubt. Read element by element, the charge has more moving parts than a typical fine-only ticket:
- A person
- Identity must be tied to the conduct. In sweeps where several people are present, an officer who issues citations by sight rather than by individualized observation can create a real identification problem.
- Intentionally or knowingly
- The culpable mental state under Penal Code § 6.03. The State must show the accused meant to reside with shelter in that place, not merely that the person was found there.
- Camps
- Residing temporarily with shelter, as the statute defines those words. The presence or absence of shelter, and evidence of an intent to stay rather than pass through, is the core of this element.
- In a public place
- A place the public can access under § 1.07(a)(40). Private property, a privately leased site, or a location where the public is excluded falls outside the statute.
- Without effective consent
- The accused lacked the consent of the officer or agency with legal authority to manage the place. If a person camped with permission — a sanctioned site, an approved program, or a property manager's go-ahead — this element fails.
The consent element is the one many citations overlook. The statute does not punish being in a public place; it punishes being there without the managing authority's consent. When the citing record does not establish who had legal control of the location, or does not show that consent was withheld, the State's proof has a gap.
What are the penalties for prohibited camping?
Prohibited camping is graded at the floor of the Texas system: a Class C misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $500 under § 12.23, with no confinement. The case is filed in municipal or justice of the peace court. A conviction is still a public record that can surface on background checks.
Prohibited camping is graded at the floor of the Texas criminal system. The table below sets out the full range.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Statute | Texas Penal Code § 48.05 |
| Classification | Class C misdemeanor |
| Confinement | None |
| Fine cap | Up to $500 (Penal Code § 12.23), plus court costs |
| Filing court | Municipal court or justice of the peace court |
| Collateral record | A conviction is a public record; expunction may be available if the case ends in dismissal or acquittal |
| Effective date | September 1, 2021 (H.B. 1925, 87th Legislature) |
The headline number — a $500 maximum fine — understates the real stakes. A Class C conviction is still a criminal conviction, and it can be reported on background screens for years. People cited under § 48.05 are often already in precarious circumstances, and a misdemeanor record can compound the problem by closing doors to housing, public benefits, and jobs. That is why a dismissal or a deferred outcome that keeps the conviction off the record is worth fighting for even when no jail time is on the table.
How prosecutors prove a camping case
Proof in a typical § 48.05 case is thin and visual — an officer's observation, body-camera footage, and photographs of shelter and belongings. Section 48.05(c) lets the State infer intent from activities like cooking, making a fire, storing belongings, or sleeping. That shortcut also shows where the proof is weak.
The proof in a typical prohibited camping case is thin and visual: an officer's observation, body-camera footage, and photographs of shelter and personal belongings. To bridge the gap between "a person was present" and "a person was camping," the statute hands the State an evidentiary shortcut. Section 48.05(c) allows intent or knowledge to be shown by evidence of activities associated with sustaining a living accommodation — cooking, making a fire, digging, storing personal belongings, or sleeping in the place.
That shortcut cuts both ways. It tells the defense exactly what the State will emphasize, and it shows where the proof is weak when those activities are absent. A person photographed next to a backpack, without a fire, without cooking gear, without a tent pitched for the night, presents a much weaker "camping" case than the statute's list contemplates. We scrutinize whether the activities the prosecutor points to actually map onto residing-with-shelter or merely show someone present in a public space.
There is a structural lesson in Hardy v. State, 281 S.W.3d 414 (Tex. Crim. App. 2009), a case about demonstrators who pitched tents in a county-road right-of-way and were prosecuted under the obstruction statute. The Court of Criminal Appeals reversed the convictions, explaining that "[p]roof that appellants violated the county ordinance is not proof that they violated § 42.03(a)(2)(A)." Id. at 427. The principle transfers directly to § 48.05: proof that someone was present in a place a city would rather keep clear is not proof of the statutory offense. The State has to prove this statute's elements, not a general policy preference for moving people along.
Can a charge be dismissed or expunged?
Yes — and because this is a Class C, the avenues are wider than in higher-grade cases. Outright dismissal for a defective citation or missed § 48.05(g) advisement, deferred disposition under Chapter 45 that ends in dismissal, or a trial acquittal can all keep a conviction off the record and open the door to expunction.
Yes — and because this is a Class C, the avenues are wider than in higher-grade cases. Prosecutors and the municipal or justice courts that handle these citations have broad discretion over disposition. The most common paths to a clean ending are:
- Outright dismissal. A citation that fails to track the elements of § 48.05, omits the managing authority's lack of consent, or reflects a missed § 48.05(g) advisement gives the prosecutor a reason to dismiss.
- Deferred disposition. Under Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 45, a justice or municipal court can defer a finding of guilt while the defendant completes a short compliance period; if the period passes without incident, the case is dismissed and no conviction is entered.
- Trial. When the State cannot prove an element, a not-guilty verdict ends the matter.
Disposition controls eligibility to clear the record. A dismissal, a deferred-disposition dismissal, or an acquittal generally positions the client to seek an expunction under Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 55, which removes the arrest and citation from public databases. A straight conviction, by contrast, stays on the record. Getting to the right disposition is the whole point of handling even a fine-only ticket with care.
County-by-county practice notes
Prohibited camping citations are filed in municipal courts and justice of the peace courts, not county criminal courts, so the practical experience varies by city and precinct across Collin, Dallas, Denton, and Tarrant Counties. We appear in the court named on the citation and handle the case there.
Prohibited camping citations are filed in municipal courts and justice of the peace courts rather than the county criminal courts, so the practical experience varies by city and precinct. A few observations from defending these and related Class C matters across North Texas:
Collin County
Frisco, Plano, McKinney, and the other Collin County cities each run their own municipal courts, and justice of the peace courts handle citations from unincorporated areas through the county's JP system. County-level criminal matters are heard at the Russell A. Steindam Courts Building in McKinney, but a § 48.05 ticket will typically stay in the issuing city's municipal court. We appear in the court named on the citation and address the case there.
Dallas County
Dallas has been the most active jurisdiction for public-camping enforcement in the region, and citations route through the City of Dallas municipal courts or the relevant justice of the peace court. Felony and county misdemeanor matters are heard at the Frank Crowley Courts Building, but that is not where a Class C camping ticket lands. We track which municipal or JP court holds the case and handle the appearance and negotiation there.
Denton County
Citations from Denton, Lewisville, and the surrounding cities go to their municipal courts, with JP courts covering unincorporated areas. The Denton County Courts Building in Denton houses the county-level criminal courts. For a camping citation, the issuing city's court is the venue we work in.
Tarrant County
Fort Worth and the other Tarrant County cities operate municipal courts that handle these citations, and JP courts cover the rest of the county. The Tim Curry Criminal Justice Center in Fort Worth is the county criminal courthouse, again not the forum for a Class C ticket. We engage the municipal or JP court identified on the citation.
One firm rule worth stating plainly: L and L Law Group has a single office, at 5899 Preston Rd, Suite 101, in Frisco. We defend cases across these counties from that office; we do not maintain branch offices in Dallas, Fort Worth, or Denton.
Collateral consequences
Because there is no jail exposure, the consequences that matter in a camping case are the ones that outlast it. A conviction can appear on background checks run by landlords, employers, and benefits agencies — a direct obstacle for someone working to secure stable housing. There is no license suspension or firearm disqualification.
Because there is no jail exposure, the consequences that matter in a camping case are the ones that outlast it. A conviction can appear on background checks run by landlords, employers, and benefits agencies. For people working to secure stable housing, a public-camping conviction can be a direct obstacle — the very outcome the citation supposedly exists to prevent. There is no driver's-license suspension and no firearm disqualification attached to a Class C camping conviction, but the record itself is the lasting harm. Resolving the case without a conviction, and then clearing it where possible, is how that harm is contained.
Prohibited camping vs. neighboring offenses
Officers frequently have more than one statute available, and the choice of charge changes the exposure. Criminal trespass (§ 30.05), obstructing a highway or passageway (§ 42.03), and disorderly conduct (§ 42.01) are the three that come up most often alongside a § 48.05 citation.
Officers frequently have more than one statute available, and the choice of charge changes the exposure. Three neighbors come up most often:
- Criminal trespass (Penal Code § 30.05). Trespass turns on notice that entry was forbidden or an order to depart, and it can be a Class B or even Class A misdemeanor depending on the location — meaningfully more serious than a Class C camping ticket. The two are sometimes charged together when an encampment is on posted property.
- Obstructing a highway or passageway (Penal Code § 42.03). This Class B offense requires that a passage actually be rendered impassable or unreasonably inconvenient or hazardous, or that the person disobey a reasonable order to move. Hardy teaches that simply occupying the side of a road is not enough; the obstruction must affect the part used for travel.
- Disorderly conduct (Penal Code § 42.01). A catch-all Class C used for a range of public conduct; when it is stacked onto a camping citation, each charge has to be evaluated on its own elements.
When more than one charge is filed, the camping count is rarely the most dangerous one. Part of our job is to see the whole picture — including any drug or warrant issue surfaced during the encounter — and to defend the encounter, not just the ticket.
