Let’s take a drive through lobster-filled Maine to find some weird laws!
Tune in next Friday to see the highlights of this weekend’s comment section!
- After January 14th you will be charged a fine for having your Christmas decorations still up
- In Augusta, to stroll down the street playing a violin is against the law
- In Portland, shoelaces must be tied while walking down the street
- In Waterville, it is illegal to blow one’s nose in public
- It’s unlawful to tickle a woman’s chin with a feather duster in Portland
- You may not step out of a plane in flight
- South Berwick, It is illegal to park in front of Dunkin Donuts unless your are 25 feet south of it
- Shotguns are required to be taken to church in the event of a Native American attack
- It is illegal to sell a car on Sunday unless it comes equipped with plumbing
- It’s illegal to clean salmon along Maine’s upper Kennebec River
- In Waterboro, Dog leashes may not be over eight feet in length
- It’s illegal to catch lobsters with your bare hands
- In Ellsworth, If any part of the sign ordinances of the city are more stringent than federal laws, even though they may be in conflict with them, they will prevail
- If you’re a Rumford resident, it’s illegal to bite your landlord
- In Wells, you may not place an advertisement in a cemetery
“After January 14th you will be charged a fine for having your Christmas decorations still up” But you won’t be fined for having your Hanukhah decor up? That’s decoration-ist. “You may not step out of a plane in flight” Does that count just for parachuting or does suicide count? “It is illegal to park in front of Dunkin Donuts unless your are 25 feet south of it” Oddly specific even for the oddly specific ones. “You may not place an advertisement in a cemetery” I am moving to maine and in my will I will demand that my headstone be an advertisement. What are they going to do, kick me out of the cemetery?
Fun Fact:
A hijacked plane stopped for fuel in Maine, going down in history as the longest hijacking. A flight going from Los Angeles to San Francisco was hijacked by Raffaele Minichiello who redirected the flight to Italy to visit his dying father. A 6,900 mile flight, Minichiello stopped for fuel in Denver, New York, Maine, and Ireland.
Click to read this article to learn more about flight TWA85
Questions of the night:
- What are your best theories to explain these weird laws?
- If you were dictator for a day, what law would you create?
- If you were dictator for a day, what law would you abolish?
Sources: Forest Grove Strange Laws, Fun Laws 50 Weird Laws, BBC News
