For many years, I have questioned the constitutionality of criminalizing swearing (here and here and here and here). As many know on this blog, I do not like profanity and we delete such comments on this site. However, we are a private site. The issue changes dramatically when people are arrested for foul language and subject to penal sanctions. It is part of the criminalization of America where pet peeves of politicians are ramped up to criminal offenses to make a point. The latest such move is found in Brighton, Michigan (shown here on Main Street) where police will be charging people with disorderly conduct for swearing. They just will not say what will constitute criminally foul language.
The city has only roughly 7,500 people so you would think that mere familiarity and peer pressure could force people to conform their conduct. Yet, the town motto is “Where quality is a way of life” and that appears to include a police-enforced language code.
At the outset, I must say that I have confronted people for swearing in front of children. While some people do so without realizing that children are present, there are certainly some who were raised without such notions of personal restraint and maturity. So I am very sympathetic to the town of Brighton in wanting to crackdown. However, good motivations do not always make for good laws.
The arbitrary selection of certain words as criminally sanctions raises serious free speech issues and questions of vagueness in enforcement. Indeed, the police do not publish or warn about certain words. It seems to leave the matter in the discretion of the officers. That creates the obvious risk of arbitrary and even discriminatory enforcement.
In the case of Colin Andersen, he says that he swore to a friend after receiving a ticket and was overheard by a police officer who charged him with disorderly conduct. Brighton police Chief Tom Wightman says that he does not have a list of prohibited words but that citizens are on notice that swearing can be criminal.
The fine is $200.
Source: CBS
J. Brian Harris, Ph.D., P.E.
I rejoice at the news that swearing can be a crime, punishable by a fine upon conviction.
Were I to be in Brighton, Michigan, and some police officer confuse me with someone else, arrest me and I find myself in court whereupon I was asked, “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you, God?” I would state that I refuse to do so,in order to avoid the penalty for swearing.
I guess I need to make a note to never go anywhere near Brighton, Michigan.
==============
LOL.
“Sticks and stones will break my bones but names will never hurt me.”
I presume the king was offended when peasants said his mother wore combat boots.
We wrote the Bill of Rights to make freedom of speech legal even if it offended the king.
Speech was offensive. Duh! Maybe the Bill of Rights should have been more clear by saying “freedom of offensive speech.”
The duration may be addressed by law. If a person persists for a predetermined period of time, speech may become harassment. But that’s a tough call.
At some point, aren’t citizens required to have the wherewithal to make it through a day on their own?
Did the Founders expect any degree of SELF-RELIANCE? Oops. Yeah they did – 24/7/365.
Holy geez! How about the cops say, “just break it up and move along.”
The American Taliban is alive well………….
Nick Spinelli said, “I’m waiting for all the nannies who love PC to come and defend this.”
Ah, Nick… Where would you be without this blog?
I;m sorry (I juxtaposed) – that was PAUL
OOPs (said the doctor during the limited local anesthesia operation)
Laser – don’t you just hate it when the doctor says ‘oops’ during the procedure. The next worst is ‘Well, didn’t expect that.’
Nick;
One could argue that outlier is a juxtapose of life suppose…..?
Nick – attempting to be Charles Nelson Riley again (and nailing it with “horse-{c}hit – banter)
Ph.D., P.E.; – Refuse to swear is priceless;5:37
Would someone — maybe someone respected in the community — but who may be out of work — please give the Chief of Police both raised middle fingers into his face — say a foot away or so — so that the Chief cannot claim assault — then get arrested, contest the arrest on Free Speech grounds and get this law / ordinance — whatever it is — quickly declared unconstitutional.
In my youth I was raise by a no-swearing permitted mother. Then I joined the navy & found that every noun had a *** adjective. Then off to college. There I found that those in science had little interest in such adjectives, however those who chose, shall we say, progressive courses used colorful ** adjectives. I ended up being a Benedict for many years until I found that special person. Life is wonderful without *** adjectives. What say you ?
“…a racial epithet 30 years ago when it wasn’t so taboo…”
In what world was that racial epithet not “so taboo” in 1984?
rcampbell – Negro was considered the correct term in 1984. Now it has become ‘taboo.’ Before that it was ‘colored people’ now, except for the NAACP that has become taboo. It has changed to people of color. You need a cheat cheat just to keep up.
I’m waiting for all the nannies who love PC to come and defend this.
They better not make “horseshit” a swear word!
Here is another problem. ADD people have no social filter, if they think it, they say it. So, they are going to be convicted because of their disability, same with Tourette’s sufferers. The problem is that the fine is low enough that it is too expensive to appeal it to get it struck down. Who wants to spend $5000 to overturn a $200 fine.
J. Brian – I do try to avoid the entire state of Texas because of the documentary The Thin Blue Line. I guess we just have to start making lists of places we cannot go. 🙂
seems unconstitutional on its face. And who decides what words are verboten. To some people H*ll is cursing while to others you need to look at the farthest end of the spectrum (F*** for instance) before they get upset.
Wear tee shirts. Do not verbally utter. “The Governor is a First Amendment Schmuck!” “First De Troit, and Now The First Amendment! Each Dead!”.
LORD
luis
I rejoice at the news that swearing can be a crime, punishable by a fine upon conviction.
Were I to be in Brighton, Michigan, and some police officer confuse me with someone else, arrest me and I find myself in court whereupon I was asked, “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you, God?” I would state that I refuse to do so,in order to avoid the penalty for swearing.
I guess I need to make a note to never go anywhere near Brighton, Michigan.
Paul;
Let’s contemplate that a bit.
Salute by mid finger;
or by-product of one being sliced off – due to fear.
As for the “bots” feelings banter;
what gives you the foundation that “we” humans aren’t robots?
Electrical pulses tell our bodies to do what input is and output does.
As for me, No 5 – will always be alive;
cause my mom WAS a snow-blower!
Number 5 was alive, but he was an outlier.