Dumb Maryland Laws You May Have Violated
Did you ever look through your husband's pockets while he's asleep? That's illegal. So is taking a lion to the movies in Baltimore City.
From the "Craziest Laws in America" blog—here are some wacky Maryland laws.
- A woman may not go through her husband's pockets while he is sleeping;
- Men may not buy drinks for female bartenders;
- It is illegal to sell condoms from vending machines with one exception: prophylactics may be dispensed from a vending machine only "in places where alcoholic beverages are sold for consumption on the premises;"
- Thistles may not grow in one's yard;
- Eating while swimming in the ocean is prohibited;
- In the entire state, it is illegal to give or receive oral sex;
- It is a violation to be in a public park with a sleeveless shirt, including joggers, punishable with a$10 fine;
- You cannot swear while inside the city limits of Baltimore;
- Maryland requires that alcohol beverage writers be certified as experts by an agency of the state before they can receive product samples, which it limits to three bottles per brand;
- Baltimore: Though you may spit on a city roadway, spitting on city sidewalks is prohibited;
- Baltimore: It's illegal to take a lion to the movies;
- Baltimore: It is a violation of city code to sell chicks or ducklings to a minor within one week of the Easter holiday;
- Baltimore has regulations governing the disposal of hog's heads, pet droppings and oyster shells;
- Columbia: You can not have an antenna exposed outside of your house yet you can have a 25' satellite dish. Though clotheslines are banned, clothes are allowed to be draped over a fence;
- Gypsies should steer clear of Caroline County, MD, where it's a $100 fine or six months in the can for "forecasting or pretending to foretell the future;"
- In Baltimore it's illegal to block the sidewalk with a box. But the offense only carries a $1 fine;
- In Baltimore it is illegal to throw bale of hay (or of anything else) out a second-story window. That gets you a $20 fine;
- In Baltimore it's illegal to play professional croquet before 2 p.m. on Sunday. The law also applies to professional quoits;
- In Baltimore it is illegal to mistreat oysters;
- In Baltimore it is illegal to wash or scrub sinks no matter how dirty they get;
- In Halethrope, MD, kisses longer than one second are illegal;
- Ocean City: A law from the early 1900s prohibits men from going topless on the Boardwalk.
Donald
5:07 pm on Monday, March 21, 2011
This is our Government for you. Wasteing money on laws like this. Lets put laws on the books that actully cut the crime rate in this state. Oh and the one about with being topless on the boardwalk. I guess that means women can go topless.
Sean Tully
7:14 pm on Monday, March 21, 2011
To be honest, some of these laws are probably decades old and don't represent a "wasting of money". It would probably be a waste of money to remove them from the books.
Cham
10:07 am on Saturday, March 26, 2011
Some of those laws aren't wacky at all. My first question would be, Are thistles an invasive species? We have a big multi flora rosa and English ivy problem already we don't need to be wrestling with thistles too. The swearing law is called, 'use of vulgar language' and I've seen people arrested for it on the Maryland Judiciary Case Search. I get it that cops don't like be hurled with cuss words. Easter chicks are adorable but most people don't know how to properly care for a chicken, please don't give them to your kids just because of a holiday, which is why there is a law. Baltimore's pet-dropping law is rigidly enforced, I don't want to be stepping on dog poop. Phlegm on a sidewalk in Arbutus probably doesn't offend anyone but keep it off my Baltimore sidewalk, thank you very much. I don't want to be tracking your germs into my house.