Criminalizing common sense

A Nevada prostitution ordinance is being challenged as overbroad:

Under the ordinance, police can arrest someone who "repeatedly beckons to, stops, attempts to stop or engage persons passing by in conversation, or repeatedly stops or attempts to stop motor vehicle operators by hailing, waiving of arms or other bodily gestures."
Attorneys for a woman charged with "loitering for the purpose of prostitution" (along with State Supreme Court justices) speculated that the law might make criminals of high school cheerleaders trying to flag down motorists for a car wash.

Yeah, it probably would. And the language forbidding attempts to "stop motor vehicle operators by hailing, waiving of arms or other bodily gestures" would also seem to criminalize attempts to summon help after an accident or mechanical breakdown.

It might even criminalize flagging down a cab!

The people who write such laws seem to be possessed by a need to sacrifice common sense at the altar of public morality. In the old days, police didn't enforce ridiculous laws like this, or if they did, they availed themselves of something once called "police discretion."

But alas! Discretion is also based on common sense, so it too must be abolished.

posted by Eric on 10.20.05 at 11:03 AM





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Comments

"repeatedly beckons to, stops, attempts to stop or engage persons passing by in conversation,"

And that part would criminalize street corner evangelists. Directly against the First Amendment. And then somebody might go to Hell because he didn't get to hear about the saving Blood of Jesus.

Wow, those folks in Pennsylvania must have totally abolished violent crime, fraud, child-molesting, tax-evasion, and spitting on the sidewalk, otherwise they wouldn't have so much time for all this hand-waving and gesticulating (sorry, I had to say that) about prostitution. Right?

I wanna move to PA!

Raging Bee   ·  October 20, 2005 02:21 PM

I moved to California, and I still wanna live in California. But EVERY time I try to leave Pennsylvania, they DRAG me back in!

Eric Scheie   ·  October 21, 2005 03:43 PM


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