Crazy State Laws

North Carolina
• A recent proposal that ministers walk the beat with police officers in Belmont, N.C., notes "the ministers will carry a Bible instead of a gun."
• An ordinance proposed in Robbins, N.C., states, "In the future, anyone not living within the immediate vicinity of Robbins must have a permit from the Chief of Police and okayed by the Mayor or one of the Commissioners." It's not clear what the permit is for, but they may be on to something.
• In Robbins, N.C., anyone who refuses to black out after hearing the blackout signal is subject to a $5 fine.
• A marriage can be declared void if either of the two persons is physically impotent.
• By town law the sewer service charge in Belhaven, N.C., used to be "$2 per month, per stool." It was recently changed to read "per toilet."
• Because people were using them for cheap furniture, it's now illegal in North Carolina to take and sell labeled milk crates.
• Elephants may not be used to plow cotton fields.
• Forest City: You must stop and call City Hall before entering town in an automobile. This is so the townspeople will have time to go out and hold their horses until you get through town.
• Greensboro: Restaurants "with on sidewalk dining" must post their menu so that it is clearly readable from the sidewalk, but is not readable from the street.
• In Raleigh, North Carolina, before a man asks for a woman's hand in marriage, he must be "inspected by all the barnyard animals on the young woman's family's property, to ensure a harmonious farm life."
• If a man and a woman who aren't married go to a hotel/motel and register themselves as married then, according to state law, they are legally married.
• If you happen to own a marl bed in North Carolina, the law demands that you put a fence around it. A marl bed may not be what you think. It is a kind of rock quarry.
• In Barber, North Carolina fights between cats and dogs are prohibited.
• In Charlotte, NC, woman must have their bodies covered with at least 16 yards of cloth at all times.
• In Forest City, N.C., it's illegal to bring a pea-shooter to a parade. It's also illegal to shoot paper clips with rubber bands.
• In Mooresville, N.C., it's illegal to attach anything to a pool table.
• In Nags Headm North Carolina you can be fined for singing out of tune for more than ninety seconds.
• In Rockwell, N.C., anyone who violates the terms of a proclamation--such as failing to appropriately celebrate Peanut Day or Jaycees Week--is guilty of a misdemeanor.
• North Carolina just passed a law saying a political action committee, or PAC, has to have a name that describes the group's cause or purpose. The idea is to prohibit, say, the highway or tobacco lobbies from calling themselves "Citizens for Good Government."
•In North Carolina it's illegal to dig ginseng on other people's property between the months of April and September, according to an 1866 law.
• In North Carolina it's illegal to sell cotton lint at night. It's also legal to sell cottonseed at night.
• In Winston-Salem, North Carolina, it is against the law for children under seven years of age to go to college.
• It's against the law to sing off key.
• It's unlawful to attract a crowd in Forest City, N.C., except when aching the Gospel, politicking or "serenading on occasion of public rejoicing."
• Punching an official at a youth sports program in Nashville, N.C., incurs a three-year suspension from the program for adult spectators as well as participants.
• Rocky Mount: It is required that you must pay a property tax on your dog.
• Southern Shores: It is against the law to roller-blade on a state highway.
• Thomasville, North Carolina, prohibits airplanes from flying over the town on Sundays during the hours between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
• The good people of Tryon, N.C., are serious about getting a good night's sleep. It's against the law for anyone to keep "fowl that shall cackle," or for anyone to play the piccolo between the hours of 11 p.m. and 7:30 a.m.
• You can't sneeze on the streets of Asheville, North Carolina.
• You may not ride a bicycle without having both your hands on the handle bars.
• lon College: There is to be no roller-blading during daylight hours, on the roads, or on the bricks. All the sidewalks at this college are made of brick.

North Dakota
• Fargo: One may be jailed for wearing a hat while dancing, or even for wearing a hat to a function where dancing is taking place.
• In Collierville: Keeping clean can be a chilly proposition, as a law there says all bathtubs must be kept in the backyard.
• In North Dakota, charitable groups can hold stud poker games to raise money, but only twice a year
• In North Dakota it is illegal to keep an elk in a sandbox in your backyard.
• In Waverly you better not let your horse near the tub, since horses are prohibited from sleeping in them, as well as in the house.
• It is illegal to lie down and fall asleep with your shoes on.
• State law of North Dakota prohibits serving beer and pretzels at the same time in any bar or restaurant.