Bizarre State laws

  • Thread starter Obelisk
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Obelisk

Obelisk

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Have you ever wondered what would prompt a law to get passed? Here's some laws from Massachusetts that left me wondering "what led to this?":

My source.
  • It is illegal to give beer to hospital patients.
  • Candy may not have more than 1% alcohol content.
  • Shooting ranges may not set up targets that resemble human beings (I get this one, but still).
  • At a wake, mourners may not eat more than three sandwiches.
  • Tomatoes may not be used in the production of clam chowder.
  • Snoring is prohibited unless all bedroom windows are closed and securely locked.
  • Quakers and witches are banned.
  • An old ordinance declares goatees illegal unless you first pay a special license fee for the privilege of wearing one in public.
  • Bullets may not be used as currency.
  • Taxi drivers are prohibited from making love in the front seat of their taxi during their shifts.
  • Massachusetts liquor stores can only open on Sundays if they are in Berkshire, Essex, Franklin, Middlesex or Worcester counties and are within 10 miles of the Vermont or New Hampshire borders.*
  • All men must carry a rifle to church on Sundays.
  • Hunting is banned on Sundays.
  • Alcoholic drink specials are illegal.
  • Public boxing matches are outlawed.
  • It is illegal to go to bed without first having a full bath.**
  • A woman can not be on top in sexual activities.
  • No gorilla is allowed in the back seat of any car.
  • Tattooing and body piercing is illegal.***
  • Children may smoke, but they may not purchase cigarettes.
*Oddly specific...
**Well 🤬.
***This law was repealed in 2000.

Feel free to share state laws from your states! There's certainly some funny ones out there, and I imagine Florida would be full of them.

Edit:
In the city of Marlborough, it is illegal to detonate a nuclear device within the city.
 
Obelisk
At a wake, mourners may not eat more than three sandwiches.
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Looks like I'm never going to a funeral in Massachusetts.
Obelisk
An old ordinance declares goatees illegal unless you first pay a special license fee for the privilege of wearing one in public.
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Good thing I have a circle beard. And live in North Dakota.
Obelisk
Hunting is banned on Sundays.
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Unless a wild boar comes storming into the church.
Obelisk
A woman can not be on top in sexual activities.
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What. The. Actual. 🤬.

- - - - -

North Dakota Laws:
  • It is illegal to lie down and fall asleep with your shoes on.
  • Beer and pretzels can’t be served at the same time in any bar or restaurant.
  • It is legal to shoot an Indian on horseback, provided you are in a covered wagon.
  • Fargo specific - One may be jailed for wearing a hat while dancing, or even for wearing a hat to a function where dancing is taking place.
 
Man, this seems like it will be a fun thread.

In my home state (NJ):
  • It is illegal to slurp your soup.
  • Frowning at a cop is a criminal offense.
  • Offering tobacco products or whiskey to animals in zoos is illegal.
  • You are not allowed to boil human bones on residential property.
  • It is illegal for males to knit during fishing season.
  • Those who work in the state capitol building are forbidden from eating pickles on Sundays.
  • Another strange pickle law: it is illegal to discard "bad pickles" by throwing them into the street.
  • It is illegal to play Pinball on Sundays.
  • Wearing a Phillies cap with a Yankees jersey can get you arrested.
  • Spitting at a horse is illegal.
  • You are not allowed to name your pet after your town's mayor.
  • It is illegal to recite the Pledge of Allegiance backward.
  • In the state's largest city, Newark, you are not allowed to eat ice cream after 6:00 P.M, unless you have a doctors note.
 
In Tennessee, it's illegal to shoot a gun at any wildlife other than a whale from your car.
In Oklahoma, whale hunting is strictly forbidden throughout the state.

These both make sense as whales are clearly the endangered invisible species in these two landlocked states... or are they referring to CEOs, who are sometimes dubbed as "whales".
 
kikie
You guys are making up these laws. No? :scared:
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I'm definitely not making up those laws. It's either in Oregon or Washington it's illegal to catch a fish using a can of corn.
 
Stephen Fry went and investigated some of these in his documentary across the United States a few years ago. He found that despite numerous sources as to their veracity, state officials almost always said that these anomalous or unusual state or bylaws are a myth; many were invented by Mark Twain.

I'm sure at least some of them are true and might stem from puritan beliefs or moral panics but I always take these funny laws with a pinch of salt.
Which I'm sure is illegal in Nebraska.
 
Liquid
Stephen Fry went and investigated some of these in his documentary across the United States a few years ago. He found that despite numerous sources as to their veracity, state officials almost always said that these anomalous or unusual state or bylaws are a myth; many were invented by Mark Twain.

I'm sure at least some of them are true and might stem from puritan beliefs or moral panics but I always take these funny laws with a pinch of salt.
Which I'm sure is illegal in Nebraska.
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On a similar train of thought...

It's fairly common to hear English people say that it's legal to shoot a Scotsman within the city walls of York.
However, every act of parliament supercedes all previous acts of parliament and common law. So the Murder Act of 1975 renders those ridiculous claims as just that, ridiculous.

It's entertaining to hear about the notion that all taxis are still required to carry hay for the horses but it's not actually reality anymore.
 
These are very interesting, and new to me :lol: Mine don't have to many specific to LA

-You may only throw a frisbee at the beach in Los Angeles County, CA with the lifeguard’s permission.

-No vehicle without a driver may exceed 60 miles per hour. - Um....

As for individual Cities;
Baldwin Park
-Nobody is allowed to ride a bicycle in a swimming pool.

Blythe
-You are not permitted to wear cowboy boots unless you already own at least two cows.

Burlingame
-It is illegal to spit, except on baseball diamonds.

Carmel
-A man can’t go outside while wearing a jacket and pants that do not match.
-Ice cream may not be eaten while standing on the sidewalk. (Repealed when Clint Eastwood was mayor)
-Women may not wear high heels while in the city limits.
 
Some of these are literally incredible and definitely (as @Liquid notes) have more than a touch of Twain about them. Others... well, the law is an ass.
 
Northstar
I would love to see a picture of Dirty Harry eating a sundae on a street corner. :lol:
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dirty-harry-ice-cream.jpg


Close enough.
 
Conformation
On a similar train of thought...

It's fairly common to hear English people say that it's legal to shoot a Scotsman within the city walls of York.
However, every act of parliament supercedes all previous acts of parliament and common law. So the Murder Act of 1975 renders those ridiculous claims as just that, ridiculous.

It's entertaining to hear about the notion that all taxis are still required to carry hay for the horses but it's not actually reality anymore.
Click to expand...

It's also not true that it is legal to kill Welshmen within the walls of Chester after sunset. And it never was; it was a command given by an English king during a Welsh rebellion and not something which was actually signed into law.
 
No duck crossing here.
Haha.
Guess I can't cross state lines with my pet duck on my head.
 
TB
  • Fargo specific - One may be jailed for wearing a hat while dancing, or even for wearing a hat to a function where dancing is taking place.
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What if I wear an NDSU hat though 💡



  • Arkansas - It is illegal to mispronounce the state name
  • Alaska - It is illegal to give a moose a beer
 
In Australia, life sentences cannot exceed 25 years. Yeah, you might've ruined the lives of thousands of families in [insert crime] but it's ok, you only have to serve prison for 25 years :lol:

EDIT: This Law has been repealed upon further research :lol:. However we still cannot wear Hot Pink pants after midday on sundays.
 
In Western Australia, it's illegal to be in possession of more than 50kg of potatoes.

In Russia, it's illegal to tell children that gay people exist.
 
It's either in Samoa or in American Samoa (I believe the former): It's a crime to forget your wife's birthday.
 

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