c/dumb-laws-we-found

Tried to wash my car in my driveway in Phoenix, got a $75 ticket for it

Apparently there's a city ordinance from 1953 that bans washing vehicles on any paved surface because of runoff, even though we're in a drought and I was using a bucket. Has anyone else gotten nailed by a law that made zero sense for your area?

City rule said no front yard fences over 3 feet - changed my mind after seeing the HOA's enforcement records

I used to think the 3 foot fence limit in my town was just some old nonsense from the 1950s. Then I went to a city council meeting last month and saw a spreadsheet they pulled from the HOA. 47 violations issued in 2023 alone for fences that were 4 feet tall. Fines started at $75 each and went up to $300 for repeat offenders. A guy two streets over got hit with $1,200 because he built a 5 foot privacy fence without a permit. Now I actually get why they keep it. Keeps property values from tanking when someone throws up an ugly 8 foot wall. Has anyone else run into a weird height limit that actually made sense once you saw the enforcement numbers?

Tried to fly a drone in my town park, got a $75 ticket instead

I took my DJI Mini out to Oak Park last Saturday, just wanted some aerial shots of the pond. Cop rolled up and handed me a citation for violating some old ordinance from 1982 that bans any 'remotely piloted aircraft' in city parks. Guess I should have checked the town website first. Anyone else run into random outdated rules like this?

TIL about an old law in my town that bans whistling after 10 PM

I was looking up local ordinances after my neighbor kept complaining about my night shift habits (you know, coming home and making noise). Turns out there's still a law on the books in my little town of Maplewood that says no whistling between 10 PM and 6 AM. Has anyone else found a weird noise-related law in their area that's still technically enforceable?

Showerthought: My town still has a law saying you can't walk a horse downtown after 10pm...

A buddy of mine actually got a warning for riding his horse through the main square at 11pm last summer, and the cop cited this old ordinance from 1947. Has anyone else dealt with a law that's just sitting around collecting dust from a hundred years ago?

My town still has a law about walking your cow on Main Street

I moved to a small town in Iowa about 3 years ago. Found out the hard way at a city council meeting that it's technically illegal to walk a cow down Main Street without a bell around its neck. The law dates back to 1887 when farmers would bring cattle through town. I made a joke about it at the meeting and the clerk just nodded and said it's never been repealed. Now I tell everyone who visits about it and they usually laugh. But here's the thing - nobody's been fined for it in like 50 years. So is it really a law anymore? Or just a weird piece of paper gathering dust? Has anyone else dug up something like this in their own town?

Don't bother fixing that old window screen law in my town cost me $120

I live in a small town outside of Austin where there's a weird local ordinance that says you can't replace window screens yourself, you have to hire a licensed contractor. Last month my back porch screen ripped, so I grabbed a $12 patch kit from the hardware store and fixed it in 10 minutes. Next thing I know, a code enforcement officer shows up at my door because a neighbor called it in. The city fined me $120 for doing the work without a permit, and now I have to pay a contractor $200 to basically do the same thing I already did. Has anyone else run into a dumb local law that cost them real money for no good reason?

Unpopular opinion: I used to think all those blue laws were silly, but after last July 4th I get it

My town in Ohio still has a law against selling alcohol on Sunday mornings before 11 AM. I always rolled my eyes at it, figured it was just old church nonsense. Then last Independence Day, a neighbor kid got rushed to the ER after some drunk adults at a block party didn't watch him near the grill. I saw the whole thing from my porch, ambulance took 20 minutes to get there. Now I don't mind the Sunday rule so much, at least it forces people to take a breather. Anyone else have a law they hated until they saw the reason firsthand?

Found out my town still has a law about keeping a horse tied up outside the library

I was at the town clerk's office last week trying to get a parking permit and I overheard someone asking about an old ordinance from 1887. Apparently there's still a law on the books in my town that says you can't leave a horse tied up outside the public library for more than 20 minutes or you get a fine. The clerk said nobody has enforced it in like 50 years but technically it's still active. I started laughing but then I thought about how many random old rules are probably just sitting there waiting to catch someone. Has anyone else found a weird law in their town that made you question why it even exists?

My town still has a law that says you can't walk backwards after dark on a sidewalk

I got pulled over in Cassville last week for walking home from a friend's house and the cop said I was 'retrograde ambulating' after 8 PM. Apparently it's a real code from 1923, has anyone else run into weird time-specific walking laws?

Just realized my town bans washing your car in the driveway unless you use a bucket with a cutoff nozzle

I got a $50 ticket last Sunday for using a regular hose to rinse my sedan, even though I was just doing a quick soap-free spray down. The officer pointed me to a 1987 ordinance that says you need a self-closing nozzle or a bucket with a spray head to wash any vehicle on private property. Has anyone else got dinged for some random hose law that nobody actually knows about?

My town still bans dancing on Sundays... found out the hard way

I moved to a small town in Ohio last year and decided to throw a backyard BBQ on a Sunday. We had some music playing and people were dancing a bit, nothing crazy. Next thing I know, a neighbor calls the cops on us for violating a law from 1897 that says no public dancing on Sundays. The officer just laughed and told us to keep it down, but I looked it up and it's still on the books. Has anyone else run into a weird old law that actually got enforced on you?

Found out my town still has a law about keeping pet emus on leashes

I was digging through old city records last week for a school project, and I found this law from 1923 that says all emus must be on a leash shorter than 6 feet when in public. I live in a normal suburb in Ohio, so I asked my neighbor who has chickens if he knew anything about it. He laughed and showed me a news clipping from 1921 about a traveling circus that lost four emus, and they apparently roamed through Main Street for three days. The law was kept on the books after the circus paid fines, and nobody ever removed it because no one here owns an emu. I told my history teacher, and he said half the stuff in the municipal code is from stuff like that, like no spitting on sidewalks from the 1800s. Has anyone else found a law in their town that just seems like a joke from a hundred years ago?

Hit 17 old laws in my town I never knew existed, like no bathing without a permit

Found a 1920s law in my town's code that requires a permit to take a bath between midnight and 6am, apparently to save water. Anyone else stumble on a weird old rule about something as basic as bathing?

Debate: Should towns keep old fines or finally update them?

In my town there's still a $25 fine for walking a giraffe down Main Street on Sundays. On one hand it's harmless and kind of funny, on the other it wastes court time when someone actually gets cited. Which side do you lean on for these old laws?

Found a loophole in my town's old 'no clotheslines' law from 1952

So I live in a small neighborhood outside of Raleigh and I noticed this weird rule still on the books about not being able to hang laundry outside. My HOA tried to fine me $75 last summer for using a clothesline to dry my sheets. I got annoyed and started digging through old town records at the library. Turns out the law only mentions 'ropes or lines attached to permanent structures' but says nothing about freestanding drying racks. So I bought a collapsible metal rack at Target for $20 and set it up in my backyard. HOA sent me another warning but I showed them the exact wording from the 1952 ordinance. They backed off completely after that one! Has anyone else found a dumb loophole like this in an old law where you live?

Vent: My town still has a law from 1927 saying you can't walk a goat down Main Street after dark

Got hit with a $400 fine for owning a 'blue hedgehog' in my town - no joke

I moved to Belton, Texas last year and found out there's still a law on the books saying you can't own a blue hedgehog. Found that out the hard way when my neighbor ratted me out for my little pet Spike, got a ticket for $400. Took me three weeks and two trips to city hall just to get it dismissed because they kept saying I needed a 'wildlife variance' but nobody knew what that was. Has anyone else run into some ancient law that's still enforced for no reason?

Showerthought: My town still has a law saying you can't walk a lion down Main Street

I was reading through old city ordinances online last Tuesday and stumbled on a rule from 1923 that bans walking a lion without a muzzle on Main Street. It's still technically on the books, and my buddy at city hall confirmed nobody's ever bothered to repeal it. Has anyone else found a law that's just sitting there from a hundred years ago that makes no sense today?

My town still has a law about bathing on Sundays

I got a warning from a cop last Sunday while washing my car in the driveway. Apparently there's an old ordinance here in Bakersfield from 1892 that bans 'unnecessary bathing' on Sundays. The officer said it's technically still enforceable. Has anyone else run into a stupid old law like this where you live?

The $50 fine for hanging laundry on Sunday in my town is still on the books

I found this one when I was doing some research for a community board meeting last month. Turns out in my town, there's still an old ordinance from 1923 that says you can't hang your laundry out to dry on Sundays. The fine is $50, which is wild because who even enforces that anymore? I grew up here and my grandma used to hang clothes every Saturday without thinking twice. I asked the town clerk about it and she just laughed and said nobody's gotten ticketed for it since the 1970s. Still weird that it's technically enforceable if someone wanted to be a jerk about it. Has anyone else found a law like this that just sits there collecting dust but never gets used?

That $60 'historical' fine for washing my car on a Wednesday in my own driveway

My town in rural Ohio still has a law on the books that says you can't wash your car on any weekday except Saturday, and I got slapped with a $60 ticket for doing it on a Wednesday. I thought it was a joke until the code enforcement lady showed up with a citation pad. Has anyone else actually been fined for one of these ancient ordinances?

Found a loophole in my town's weird Sunday shopping ban

My town in Alabama still has a law from the 1950s that says you can't buy any clothes on Sunday before noon. I needed new work pants last Sunday and figured out that buying them at a gas station convenience store counts as 'emergency goods' and the clerk didn't bat an eye. Anyone else got a weird local law like this that you found a workaround for?

Paid $200 for a 'no lemon law' used car and the thing crapped out in 3 weeks

I found this dumb old law in my town that says you can sell a used car 'as is' with no warranty if the buyer signs a specific form, but the town clerk told me there's also a weird local rule that the car has to pass a safety check within 30 days of sale or the seller has to take it back. So I bought this beat up 2002 Honda Civic from a guy on Craigslist for $200, signed the form, and the transmission went out after 3 weeks. I called the town clerk's office and they actually said the seller might have to refund me because of that old safety check rule from like 1984. The seller got all mad but eventually gave me $150 back. Still lost $50 but honestly it felt like a win against a dumb system. Has anyone else found a stupid old law that actually helped you out?

Got fined $50 for feeding pigeons in Venice Beach last Saturday

Cop walked up while I was tossing bread crumbs and handed me a ticket on the spot. Apparently there's a city ordinance from 1924 that bans feeding any wild birds on public property. Has anyone else gotten nailed by a weird local law you never heard of?