law-abiding

[ law-uh-bahy-ding ]

/ ˈlɔ əˌbaɪ dɪŋ /

obeying or keeping the law; obedient to law: law-abiding citizens.

Origin of law-abiding

First recorded in 1830–40

law-a·bid·ing·ness, noun

The cops had come up short, unable to find the two men in a sea of several hundred thousand law-abiding people.

How to Get Away With Stealing $2 Million in Jewelry in the Heart of New York |John Surico |November 13, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Most Muslims, like most people everywhere, are peaceable and law-abiding.

Can We Lose the Violent Muslim Cliché? |Jay Parini |October 12, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The majority of these people are hardworking, law-abiding citizens who believe in strong family values.

The Psychology of Sex Slave Rings |Charlotte Lytton |August 31, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
She makes bold statements that IQ, law-abiding or -breaking tendencies and political alignment are all genetically determined.

Occupying the Throne: Justine Tunney, Neoreactionaries, and the New 1% |Arthur Chu |August 1, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

I completely support the right of law-abiding citizens to own and use guns for sport and self-protection.

The Chipotle Anti-Gun ‘Scandal’ Has the Right Up in Arms |Sally Kohn |May 20, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The sentiment shown by the trolleymen does full justice to their record as law-abiding and intelligent public servants.

From the Bottom Up |Alexander Irvine
Because I think it's my duty, as a law-abiding citizen, to set a good example.

Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 93, November 26, 1887 |Various
Curiously enough, seizure of the Gate by force had not occurred to any of this law-abiding, well-disciplined group.

Astounding Stories, August, 1931 |Various
There was the farm-hand who had come to town with the wild son of his employer—an honest, law-abiding farmer.

Christmas Eve on Lonesome and Other Stories |John Fox, Jr.
The Tahsildar is divested of his magisterial powers, and to the law-abiding and punctual is not more harmful than the dormouse.

Castes and Tribes of Southern India |Edgar Thurston

law-abiding

adhering more or less strictly to the laws a law-abiding citizen

law-abidingness, noun