Weirdest Laws Still on the Books in America

Illegal to have an ice cream cone in your back pocket

Alabama's classic (if unverified) law meant to stop horse thieves from luring horses with the scent of sweets.

State: AlabamaApprox. Year Enacted: 1800sWeirdness: 8/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Illegal to push a live moose out of a moving airplane

Alaska actually had to legislate against this after a bizarre real incident involving parachuting moose.

State: AlaskaApprox. Year Enacted: 1970sWeirdness: 9/10Still Enforced?: ✓

added by IJR

Illegal to hunt camels

A leftover from the U.S. Army's short-lived 19th-century camel corps experiment in the Southwest.

State: ArizonaApprox. Year Enacted: 1957Weirdness: 7/10Still Enforced?: ✓

added by IJR

Illegal to mispronounce 'Arkansas'

The state legislature literally codified the 'correct' pronunciation into law.

State: ArkansasApprox. Year Enacted: 1881Weirdness: 6/10Still Enforced?: ✓

added by IJR

Frogs can't croak after 11 p.m.

An old ordinance said to protect the peace and quiet of Old West towns from noisy amphibians.

State: CaliforniaApprox. Year Enacted: 1800sWeirdness: 8/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Illegal to dispose of used razor blades in the trash

A genuinely practical safety law that sounds absurd out of context.

State: ConnecticutApprox. Year Enacted: 1900sWeirdness: 5/10Still Enforced?: ✓

added by IJR

Unmarried couples couldn't cohabitate

Florida's 'lewd and lascivious cohabitation' law stood until 2016 before being formally repealed.

State: FloridaApprox. Year Enacted: 1868Weirdness: 7/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Illegal to tie a giraffe to a lamppost

Atlanta's oddly specific ordinance nobody quite remembers the reasoning for.

State: GeorgiaApprox. Year Enacted: 1900sWeirdness: 9/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Cannibalism is punishable by death

Idaho's real, still-active statute is oddly specific for something you'd assume was already illegal.

State: IdahoApprox. Year Enacted: 1990Weirdness: 9/10Still Enforced?: ✓

added by IJR

Can't remarry the same man four times

Kentucky apparently decided three tries at a relationship was the limit.

State: KentuckyApprox. Year Enacted: 1800sWeirdness: 8/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Illegal to gargle in public

Louisiana's law against public gargling remains one of the most confusing on record.

State: LouisianaApprox. Year Enacted: 1900sWeirdness: 7/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Illegal to go to bed without bathing

A Puritan-era Massachusetts rule enforcing cleanliness before sleep.

State: MassachusettsApprox. Year Enacted: 1700sWeirdness: 6/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Illegal to swear in front of women and children

An actual Michigan statute from the late 1800s that technically remains on the books.

State: MichiganApprox. Year Enacted: 1897Weirdness: 7/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Illegal to cross state lines with a duck on your head

Minnesota's beloved bit of legislative folklore, often repeated but rarely explained.

State: MinnesotaApprox. Year Enacted: 1900sWeirdness: 9/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Illegal to sing off key

North Carolina supposedly protects public ears with this musical mandate.

State: North CarolinaApprox. Year Enacted: 1900sWeirdness: 6/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Illegal to get a fish drunk

Ohio's law against intoxicating fish sounds like satire but keeps showing up in 'weird law' lists.

State: OhioApprox. Year Enacted: 1900sWeirdness: 8/10Still Enforced?: —

added by IJR

Bear wrestling is banned

Oklahoma actually passed this in 2018 after years of live bear-wrestling exhibitions at fairs.

State: OklahomaApprox. Year Enacted: 2018Weirdness: 7/10Still Enforced?: ✓

added by IJR

Illegal to share your Netflix password

Tennessee updated an old theft-of-services law in 2011 to cover streaming credentials.

State: TennesseeApprox. Year Enacted: 2011Weirdness: 6/10Still Enforced?: ✓

added by IJR