California Penal Code 626 is the chapter of the Penal Code that governs trespassing and disruption on school, college, and university campuses. It bundles more than a dozen separate offenses, from a parent refusing to leave a K-12 campus to a registered sex offender walking onto school grounds without written permission to a person carrying a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school. Most violations are misdemeanors punishable by up to $500 in fines and six months in county jail, but repeat offenders face mandatory minimum jail time, drug offenders face doubled fines, and firearm possession under Section 626.9 is a felony carrying a state prison sentence.
What Campuses Are Covered
Section 626 is the definitions section that sets the reach of the whole chapter. On the K-12 side, it covers every public and private elementary, junior high, and high school in California, along with adult schools, continuation schools, regional occupational centers, and technical schools.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626 “School” reaches beyond the fence line to include any public sidewalk or right-of-way immediately next to the property, and off-site locations where a teacher and students are present for a school activity.
For higher education, the chapter names the University of California and its affiliated campuses, the California State University system, every public community college, and accredited nonprofit independent universities that grant undergraduate or graduate degrees.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626 In practical terms, if it’s an educational campus in California, this chapter applies.
Trespass Under Section 626.8
Section 626.8 is the broadest and most commonly charged provision. It applies to anyone who enters a school building, school grounds, or an adjacent street or sidewalk without “lawful business” and whose presence interferes with school activities.2California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.8 Both elements matter. You have to lack a legitimate reason to be there, and your presence or behavior has to actually disrupt operations.
“Lawful business” means any reason for being on school property that isn’t prohibited by law, ordinance, or a school regulation. A parent at a conference, a delivery driver, or a neighbor crossing a field after hours generally qualifies. A person wandering hallways with no connection to the school does not.
A violation happens in several ways under this section:
- Refusing to leave after being asked by the principal, a designated school employee, a school security officer, or any peace officer.
- Returning to the same school property within seven days of being told to leave.
- Being told to leave at least twice in the same school year after entering without lawful business and disrupting activities.
- Knowingly creating a disruption intended to threaten the physical safety of preschool or K-8 students arriving at, attending, or leaving school.
When someone is ordered off campus, the person giving the order must warn them that returning within seven days is itself a crime.2California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.8 That warning is a required part of the process. For this section, “school” means any preschool or K-12 campus, public or private.
Non-Students on K-12 Campuses Under Section 626.7
Section 626.7 targets a narrower situation: an outsider who moves past the public-facing areas of a K-12 public school into instructional or restricted zones. If you aren’t a student, an employee, or someone whose job requires you to be there, and a school official reasonably believes you’re committing or planning an act that would interfere with school operations, they can order you to leave.3California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.7
Failing to leave, or returning without following the school’s posted check-in requirements, is a misdemeanor. The official issuing the order must tell you that coming back without checking in with the administrative office first is a criminal offense.
Colleges and Universities Under Section 626.6
Section 626.6 covers outsiders on college and university campuses. If you’re not a student, officer, or employee of the institution and aren’t required by your job to be there, a campus administrator or their designee can order you to leave when it reasonably appears you’re committing or planning an act likely to interfere with campus operations.4California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.6
Failing to leave or knowingly returning within seven days is a misdemeanor punishable by up to $500 in fines, up to six months in county jail, or both. Section 626.6 does not include the escalating repeat-offender minimums that apply on the K-12 side. The order must include a warning that re-entering within seven days is a crime.
Campus Consent Withdrawal Under Section 626.4
Section 626.4 gives campus administrators a broader tool that works across K-12 schools, community colleges, state universities, UC campuses, and independent institutions. The chief administrative officer or a designated employee can withdraw a person’s consent to be on campus whenever there’s reasonable cause to believe the person willfully disrupted the orderly operation of the campus.5California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.4
The withdrawal cannot last longer than 14 days. During that period, knowingly entering or remaining on campus is a misdemeanor. If a designee rather than the chief administrator issues the withdrawal, the chief administrator has 24 hours to confirm it in writing; without that confirmation, the withdrawal is void. The person banned can request a hearing at any point during the two-week period, and the school must schedule it within seven days of receiving the request. The chief administrator must reinstate consent whenever there’s reason to believe the person’s presence no longer poses a substantial threat to campus operations.
Returning After Suspension or Dismissal Under Section 626.2
Section 626.2 covers students and employees who were suspended or dismissed for disrupting operations and told to stay away as a condition. If you’ve received written notice by certified or registered mail that you’re barred from campus, knowingly returning without written permission from the chief administrator is a misdemeanor.6California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.2
The ban lasts the length of the suspension, and after a full dismissal, campus access can be denied for up to one year. The statute presumes you knew about the ban if the required notice was mailed to your last known address, so claiming you never opened the letter is not a reliable defense.
Registered Sex Offenders Under Section 626.81
Section 626.81 imposes the strictest access rules in the chapter. If you’re required to register as a sex offender under Penal Code 290, entering any school building or school grounds without both lawful business and advance written permission from the chief administrator is a misdemeanor.7California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.81 The permission must specify the exact dates and times of the approved visit. Unlike the general trespass sections, this one doesn’t require a disruption or a prior order to leave. Being present without written authorization is enough.
A registrant who is not a family member of a student can still be granted volunteer access, but the chief administrator must notify every parent or guardian at the school at least 14 days before the first approved visit. If the registrant is a family member of a student, the parent notification requirement does not apply, but written permission is still required.
Drug Offenders Under Section 626.85
Section 626.85 creates parallel restrictions for “specified drug offenders.” That means anyone convicted within the past three years of selling or possessing controlled substances for sale, or anyone convicted of drug use, possession, or being under the influence where the conduct occurred at least partly on school property.8California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.85
The structure mirrors Section 626.8: entering school grounds, remaining after being told to leave, returning within seven days, or establishing a pattern of unauthorized entry is a misdemeanor. Two exceptions exist. Parents or guardians of students at the school may be present during school activities, and enrolled students may attend school activities. Anyone else with a qualifying drug conviction needs prior written permission from the chief administrator. The fines under this section are double those in the standard trespassing provisions: up to $1,000 for a first offense, compared to $500 under Sections 626.7 and 626.8.
Firearms and Weapons Under Sections 626.9 and 626.10
Two sections in the chapter deal specifically with weapons and carry the heaviest penalties. Section 626.9, the Gun-Free School Zone Act, makes it a felony to possess a firearm on the grounds of, or within 1,000 feet of, any K-12 school. The punishment is two, three, or five years in state prison.9California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.9
Section 626.10 prohibits bringing knives with blades longer than 2½ inches, tasers, stun guns, BB guns, and similar weapons onto K-12 school grounds. The offense is punishable by up to one year in county jail or a state prison term. On college and university campuses, the prohibited items are narrower, focusing on fixed-blade knives over 2½ inches.10California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.10 Peace officers, active-duty military personnel, and certain other authorized individuals are exempt.
Penalties Across the Chapter
Most Penal Code 626 violations are misdemeanors, and the penalty structure under Sections 626.7 and 626.8 escalates sharply with prior convictions.
- First offense: up to $500 in fines, up to six months in county jail, or both.2California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.8
- One prior conviction under this chapter or Section 415.5 (disturbing the peace on campus): a mandatory minimum of 10 days in county jail, maximum six months, no probation or parole release until the 10 days are served, fines up to $500.
- Two or more prior convictions: a mandatory minimum of 90 days in county jail, maximum six months, no release on any basis until the 90 days are served, fines up to $500.
Sections 626.2 and 626.6 carry a flat penalty of up to $500 and six months in jail, without the escalating minimums. Section 626.85 uses the same escalating structure as 626.8 but doubles the maximum fine to $1,000 at every tier. Section 626.9 is the outlier, as a felony punishable by state prison time.
Parent and Guardian Access
These rules do not shut parents out of their children’s schools. California Education Code 51101 gives parents and guardians of enrolled students the right to observe their child’s classroom within a reasonable time after requesting it, meet with teachers and the principal, and volunteer in the classroom under teacher supervision.11California Legislative Information. California Education Code – Section 51101 Schools must also inform parents in advance about visitor procedures, disciplinary policies, and attendance rules.
Exercising these rights generally qualifies as lawful business under the trespass statutes, so a parent using them should not face a trespass order for that reason alone. A parent who then disrupts school operations can still have consent to remain withdrawn under Section 626.4, and parents subject to a restraining order or a custody order limiting school access do not have these visitation rights.
First Amendment Protections
Sections 626.6 and 626.8 both state that the trespassing rules cannot be used to suppress constitutionally protected speech or assembly.4California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.62California Legislative Information. California Penal Code – Section 626.8 A school administrator cannot issue a trespass order simply because someone is engaged in peaceful protest or free expression on or near campus. The protection has limits: conduct that independently disrupts school operations, such as blocking entrances, making threats, or preventing classes from functioning, can still support a trespass order regardless of the message behind it.