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Getting arrested for standing in a parking lot feels like a mistake. You were not fighting, not stealing, not driving. You were just there.
Yes, you can be arrested for loitering in Myrtle Beach. But the city ordinance does not punish standing around by itself. It targets loitering tied to a harmful purpose, and in most cases it requires an officer to give you a chance to explain yourself before any arrest. Miss that step, and the charge can fall apart. Because loitering is prosecuted as a criminal offense in municipal court, a dedicated Myrtle Beach criminal defense lawyer can test the officer’s conduct before the case ever reaches a judge.
The attorneys at Axelrod & Associates handle criminal defense and civil rights cases across the Grand Strand. If you or someone close to you was arrested outside a business or in a public lot, it helps to know what the ordinance actually requires.
Key Takeaways
- Loitering by itself is not a crime in Myrtle Beach. The city ordinance targets loitering with a harmful purpose or effect.
- Before most loitering arrests, an officer has to give you a chance to explain why you are there.
- The arrests outside Fresh Brewed Coffee House in August 2026 led to lawsuits claiming officers skipped that step.
- Open container and pedestrian charges were stacked onto the loitering arrests in this case.
- If police skip that step, the ordinance says no one can be convicted.
Each point turns on what the officer did before the cuffs came out, which is where most of these cases are won or lost.
Axelrod & Associates offers free consultations for anyone facing a loitering or related charge in Myrtle Beach. One call tells you whether the stop was even legal.
Is Loitering Illegal in Myrtle Beach?
Loitering by itself is legal. You can stand on a sidewalk, wait outside a shop, or rest in a public lot without breaking the law.
What the city targets is narrower. Myrtle Beach City Code Section 14-85, titled loitering with harmful purpose or effect, does not punish standing or sitting on its own.
The charge applies when someone lingers with a harmful purpose, shown by conduct like trying to take over a public space, blocking people, or refusing to give a name when an officer has a real reason to ask. The ordinance has separate parts for prostitution and drug loitering, which are not what the people here were charged with.
That distinction matters for anyone facing a criminal defense case built on a loitering arrest. If the prosecution cannot show the harmful purpose, the ground under the charge gets thin.
The Fresh Brewed Coffee House Arrests and the Lawsuits Against the City
In August 2026, Myrtle Beach police arrested 14 people in the city hall parking lot next to Fresh Brewed Coffee House, a nonprofit that provides daytime services for people experiencing homelessness.
The arrests happened on August 8 and 9, and many of those arrested were homeless. Firm attorneys Stuart Axelrod and Tristan Shaffer represent several of those arrested and have filed lawsuits against the city, with more on the way, according to WPDE.
What the lawsuits claim
The complaints fall into two groups. The clients charged with loitering argue the arrests broke the city’s own ordinance, because officers skipped the pre-arrest step the rule requires and because there was no harmful intent, which a loitering charge also requires.
One client, a coffee house employee charged with a pedestrian violation, says he was arrested for recording the police, which the First Amendment protects, and that officers singled him out while others walked in the same road. The suits name the city, and in one case a police officer, over how the arrests were carried out, as the Post and Courier reported.
What the attorneys want
The firm frames this as more than a set of criminal cases. It argues the city is punishing homeless people instead of helping them.
Tristan Shaffer, a shareholder leading the effort with Axelrod, told WPDE the real fix is to “put resources toward building people up so that they are no longer homeless,” and said the goal of the suits is to change how the city handles homelessness.
Other Charges That Often Ride Along With a Loitering Stop
These arrests did not stop at loitering. The August 2026 cases included three types of charges:
- Loitering, under the city loitering ordinance.
- Open container, for alcohol in an open cup or bottle in public. A Myrtle Beach open container charge carries its own fine.
- Pedestrian on highway, for walking in or along a roadway where it is not allowed.
Each charge stands or falls on its own facts. Beating the loitering count does not erase an open container ticket, so every line on the arrest sheet needs its own answer.
What the Myrtle Beach Loitering Ordinance Actually Requires
This is the part that decides many of these cases. Under the city loitering rule, an officer usually cannot arrest you on the spot. Unless you run or it is impractical, the ordinance requires the officer to “afford the actor an opportunity to dispel any alarm” first, by asking you to identify yourself and explain your presence and what you were doing. If the officer skips that step, or if your explanation was true and would have cleared up the concern, no one can be convicted under the ordinance.
That single requirement sits at the center of the Fresh Brewed lawsuits. Axelrod read the ordinance aloud when the attorneys spoke outside the coffee house, and argued the officers never gave his clients that chance. They asked no questions. They just made arrests. If that holds up in court, the arrests broke the city’s own rule.
If your arrest looks anything like these, the criminal defense team at Axelrod & Associates can review the police report and tell you where it breaks.
What to Do If You Are Arrested for Loitering in Myrtle Beach
Stay calm and protect your case from the first minute. These steps matter most in the hours around the arrest.
- Do not resist, even if the arrest feels wrong. You fight the charge in court, not on the street.
- Give your name and address if asked. Beyond that, you can stay quiet.
- Remember whether the officer asked you to explain your presence. That one detail can decide the case.
- Write down names, times, and what was said while it is fresh.
- Call a Myrtle Beach loitering attorney before you talk to anyone about what happened.
If the stop crossed the line into a wrongful arrest, you may have a civil rights claim of your own, the same kind filed against the city over these arrests. A loitering attorney in Myrtle Beach can look at both sides at once, the defense of the charge and any claim you might have for the arrest.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can police arrest you for loitering if a business gave you permission to be there?
Often not. The loitering rule targets people with no lawful reason to be somewhere, so permission to be on a property cuts against the charge. In the Fresh Brewed case, the coffee house had an agreement with the city to use the lot for events, and whether that covered the people arrested is one of the things the lawsuits dispute. If you had permission or another reason to be where you were, raise it early, because it goes straight to whether the arrest was valid.
Is loitering a misdemeanor in South Carolina?
Yes, but a minor one. Under the Myrtle Beach ordinance, loitering is a misdemeanor handled in municipal court, punishable by up to 30 days in jail or a fine of up to $500, not a felony. A lawyer can push to get a first-time charge reduced or dismissed.
What happens if the officer did not read me my rights during a loitering arrest?
Miranda warnings only matter once police question you in custody, so a missing warning does not automatically void the arrest. What it can do is keep your later statements out of court. Tell your lawyer exactly when the questions started and what you said.
Can I sue the city if I was arrested for loitering without cause?
You may be able to, through a civil rights claim like the ones already filed against Myrtle Beach over these arrests. These claims turn on whether officers had legal grounds and followed the ordinance. A short case review tells you if you have one.
Does recording the police make my arrest illegal?
Recording officers in public is generally protected, so an arrest made because you were filming can be challenged. One of the Myrtle Beach claims rests on exactly that. Keep the footage and do not delete anything, since it may be the strongest proof you have.
Axelrod & Associates, P.A.: Your Myrtle Beach Criminal Defense Law Firm
A loitering arrest can feel like the city decided you did not belong somewhere. One stop can turn into stacked charges fast, and the police have to follow the ordinance before any of it holds up.
Our attorneys read the report line by line, check whether officers gave you the chance the law requires, and push on every weak point, both in the criminal case and in any claim you may have against the city. If you were arrested outside a business or in a public lot, contact our firm today and tell us what happened.
