The Florida government has decided to dictate how people wear their clothes now. Kenneth Smith was just standing on the street, when a cop noticed he wasn’t dressed according to the city ordinance:
According to a Riviera Beach Police Department affidavit, cops were investigating a report of a man selling drugs from a parked Chevy Impala when they spotted Smith standing beside the vehicle. As Officer B. Jackson noted in the report, Smith’s brown and white plaid shorts “were so low that it exposed his blue and white boxer shorts approximately two inches below his waist.” Smith, who was also charged with disorderly conduct, could be fined up to $150 on the pants charge. In a bid to criminalize a fashion style popularized by urban youth and hip-hop fans, Riviera Beach voters approved the new ordinance earlier this year.
First time “exposers of undergarments in public” face a fine. Repeat offenders face up to 30 days in jail. I guess all the really bad crimes in Riviera Beach have been solved.
A judge says Riviera Beach’s “saggy pants” law is unconstitutional in the case of a 17-year-old who spent a night in jail for having his underwear showing.
And a public defender said her office wants to get the law tossed altogether.
However, the charge still isn’t technically dropped; there will be a new arraignment October 5.
