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Thread: How to tell if local laws against crossdressing?

  1. #1
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    How to tell if local laws against crossdressing?

    So it doesn't sound like there are any states that have laws against crossdressing.

    I get the impression that some small towns still might have them and actually enforce them.

    What's the easiest way to find out if a town has such laws? Do you have to contact the police department and/or city office?

    It wouldn't be fun to be stopped by a police officer while dressed and discover it's illegal.

  2. #2
    Silver Member trannie T's Avatar
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    There maybe a few laws still on the books prohibiting crossdressing but none has been enforced for many years. If you are concerned call your local police department or if you are in a city call an LBGT organization or the ACLU.
    It takes a real man to wear a dress.

  3. #3
    Clear Air Turbulence Joni Marie Cruz's Avatar
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    Hi Dack-

    Public laws are by definition public. You can simply contact your local police department or sheriff's office or county DA or whomever and ask. I suppose there is the remote possibility that some such antiquated state law or city ordinance could still be on the books but I can't really imagine a law enforcement officer citing someone for it, though I suppose it wouldn't be entirely outside the realm of possibility. Anyway, the simplest way to get your question answered is just to ask.

    BTW, if the answer to your question turns out to be that there is such a law, please let me know so I can avoid where you live.

    Hugs...Joni Marie
    "Because equality is not a concept. It's not something we should be striving for. It's a necessity. Equality is like gravity. We need it to stand on this earth as men and women. And the misogyny that is in every culture is not a true part of the human condition. It is life out of balance, and that imbalance is sucking something out of the soul of every man and woman who's confronted with it."

    --Joss Whedon, to a reporter who asked, "So why do you create these strong women characters?"

  4. #4
    Silver Member Marissa's Avatar
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    [SIZE=4]Very interesting question Dack, but would agree with T that most may not be enforced. [/SIZE]
    [SIZE=4][/SIZE]
    [SIZE=4]Funny how small towns carry laws that no one enforces but can still be used. [/SIZE]
    [SIZE=4][/SIZE]
    [SIZE=4]Maybe there really is a law against wearing white after labor day.... who knows????????? [/SIZE]
    [SIZE=4][/SIZE]
    [SIZE=4]sorry, not trying to make light of a question you take serious.. i would do the research of the area you plan to visit or pass through..[/SIZE]
    Marissa



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  5. #5
    Member Veronica75's Avatar
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    If I found I lived in a locality with such a law, I'd go through the local odinances with a fine tooth comb, find every other sill restriction, then start a campaign to abolish all of them (to avoid suspiciously singling out the one cd law).

    Frankly it's a dumb law to have on the books. If some hotshot cop tried to enforce it, perhaps to embarass the "perp," the town could find itself at the wrong end of a very big-- and expensive-- lawsuit. The ACLU would probably put some lawyers on it for free. I doubt most local governments have counsel that is quite so cheap.

  6. #6
    Silver Member linnea's Avatar
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    Twenty years ago, I contacted the city police departments of several small towns in Washington. I was just trying to be sure that there were not laws in those places against crossdressing. None had such laws I was glad to find out.
    I'm not saying that they don't exist anywhere, but I do know that I've been stopped by the Washington State Patrol a couple of times when I was dressed. I gave the officer in each case my male driver's license. The officer did his checking, etc., and since the stops were for equipment problems (headlight, then a tail-light), he gave me back my license and said, "Drive carefully, and get that light fixed."
    That was it.
    But that was the Washington State Patrol. There are small logging towns in Washington where I wouldn't feel so confident that a stop would end so easily. If I were going to one of those (for whatever reason, I don't know), I would check ahead of time.
    I would also check with the state Attorney General's office about state-wide practices.
    warmly, Linnea

  7. #7
    Joanie sterling12's Avatar
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    If anyone bothered to check, most of those old laws have a proviso. They make it illegal to crossdress "in the commission of a crime."

    It's conceivable that they could apply such an ordinance, if they also had a law about "only gals in the female bathroom." But if you used that bathroom, if you got caught or arrested for it; it would be a very rare thing for a DA to take a case like that to Court. Would be an incredible waste of The Taxpayer's Money.

    By all means go ahead and check up on your local laws, but I wouldn't get myself in a lather about it. The odds are really good that even if they have such laws, they haven't been enforced for years. Why would they choose to make an example out of you?

    Peace and Love, Joanie

  8. #8
    curious member crossdrezzer1's Avatar
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    depends on the town,,,, I hear its not illegal to dress as a women as long as you dont have panties on,,if you wear male undies you not breaking the law,,,how stupid is that,, if you show them then thats a law breaker show whats the point,,, a small town here still has a law from 1700's saying illegal to do outdoor activitys like bike ride,jog on sunday,,,they dont enforce it at all but its still in the book just in case the cop wants you for a personal reason,,, something like that could be problematice,,they leave laws from the old days in so the cops have power over a law abiding citizen...
    Only friends can call me Amy,,, so if your reading this your a friend.

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  9. #9
    Miss Conception Karren H's Avatar
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    Stop by the State Police station enfemme.. If they don't arrest you then your good to go! Lol
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  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Karren Hutton View Post
    Stop by the State Police station enfemme.. If they don't arrest you then your good to go! Lol
    Unless they are the fashion police. Then someone might deserve it!

  11. #11
    Clear Air Turbulence Joni Marie Cruz's Avatar
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    Stacy can frisk me any time. I'll pass on getting cuffed by Clinton, though, he's so bitchy sometimes.

    Hugs...Joni Marie

    Quote Originally Posted by Sue_CD View Post
    Unless they are the fashion police. Then someone might deserve it!
    "Because equality is not a concept. It's not something we should be striving for. It's a necessity. Equality is like gravity. We need it to stand on this earth as men and women. And the misogyny that is in every culture is not a true part of the human condition. It is life out of balance, and that imbalance is sucking something out of the soul of every man and woman who's confronted with it."

    --Joss Whedon, to a reporter who asked, "So why do you create these strong women characters?"

  12. #12
    Pantyhose forever! joann07's Avatar
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    No such law

    Here's my take on this.
    If there was a federal or state law against crossdressing, then the police would have to arrest everyone, male and female, who dresses in clothing of the opposite sex no matter if its full or partial.
    Of course, you have the men who dress in women's clothes, but as many of you know women wear men's clothing for work, comfort, and pleasure. These would include sports jerseys (i.e. football, basketball, Hockey, Baseball, etc, etc.), suits and tuxes, shirts, pants, construction uniforms, etc, etc, etc.
    If this law exists, it would probably contain hundreds of pages listing each individual item of clothing that is considered male specific and female specific, such as jewelry, shoes, hats, clothing, etc, etc, etc.

    To me, a law like that could never be enforced because, as I said before, it would be impossible to arrest everyone who cross dress in one another's item of clothing because everyone does it.

    I consider crossdressing an unofficial law because it's society, in general, who dictates it.


    Hugs!
    Last edited by joann07; 05-25-2009 at 10:30 AM.
    JoAnn

    I love to see a beautiful woman in a nice dress, but then again, I also want to wear that dress.

  13. #13
    Clear Air Turbulence Joni Marie Cruz's Avatar
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    Ya know, if there really are any such laws or ordinances on the books somewhere, I would really be interested in hearing about them. Not just some sort of hearsay, like "I heard..." or "a friend of my cousin's brother-in-law's great uncle was arrested for crossdressing last year and spent 30 days in jail...".

    My opinion is that no officer/deputy/constable/what-have-you would bother writing a citation for something so petty (if it is a crime somewhere it could only be a low level misdemeanor, not an arrestable offense), if he did write it no DA would prosecute and if somehow or other it did wind up in front of a magistrate or judge he would toss it out of court. Even small town cops or county deputies have way more to do these days than pursue such minor infractions, as do the courts. Just my two cents.

    Hugs...Joni Marie
    "Because equality is not a concept. It's not something we should be striving for. It's a necessity. Equality is like gravity. We need it to stand on this earth as men and women. And the misogyny that is in every culture is not a true part of the human condition. It is life out of balance, and that imbalance is sucking something out of the soul of every man and woman who's confronted with it."

    --Joss Whedon, to a reporter who asked, "So why do you create these strong women characters?"

  14. #14
    Silver Member linnea's Avatar
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    You are absolutely right on, Joann.
    warmly, Linnea

  15. #15
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    Don't go asking the police dept about this, they will find some other reason to act like asses
    Don't ever ask them if anything is illegal. Talk to ACLU or someone
    It takes a true Erin to be a pain in the assatar.

  16. #16
    Silver Member kellycan27's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Nicole Erin View Post
    Don't go asking the police dept about this, they will find some other reason to act like asses
    Don't ever ask them if anything is illegal. Talk to ACLU or someone
    Gawd.. Where do you live? This is an innocent question, The police have more important things to do than hassle crossdressers.
    "one day I'll fly away..... leave all this to yesterday"

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  17. #17
    Cougar in hiding kymmieLorain's Avatar
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    Well I think any law about crossdressing may be against the constitution isn't it say we have the right to persute of happiness. LOL

    Kymmie
    Just your average harley riding crossdressing biker

    Why be normal??????

  18. #18
    Senior Member Carly D.'s Avatar
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    I don't think there are any laws against cross dressing but there is likely the same prejudice against anyone who displays a different lifestyle.. gays are getting more accepted all the time.. when is our turn???
    This is what I mean by "every guy can look like a girl from the right angles".. this is one of the first pictures of me dressed up.. very vague look.. almost fem...

  19. #19
    Clear Air Turbulence Joni Marie Cruz's Avatar
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    Second that, Kelly. Thank you. Sheesh.

    As I mentioned in my first post, public laws are public information. If for some reason you cannot bring yourself to ask a simple, anonymous question via a phone call to your local police, sheriff or DA, you can go online and find the answer, though it may take going through a little research and some of your time. For instance, having just moved from Oregon and being somewhat familiar with some laws of the state, I typed in Oregon Revised Statutes, got a Wiki link, found the statutes regarding public indecency and, as I already knew, no statutes regarding public (or private, for that matter) crossdressing. Anyone can do the same in whatever state they happen to live. The same goes for counties and municipalities, just call and ask or go online and do a little research. There are no laws that you can be held accountable for in a court of law that are not public knowledge.

    Just for fun (I am easily amused), since I recently moved to Washington, I cruised their statutes. Having no idea of how they're laid out or titled, it still took me less then 3 minutes to find the statutes regarding public indecency and public nuisances. Nothing about crossdressing being illegal in the state of Washington.

    Just for the record, this is not to say that you can't run afoul of some individual officer who is prejudiced against TG people and will try to find some way to hassle you. There are officers in every jurisdiction, hopefully a minority, who are ignorant, badge heavy, bigoted a-holes. A sad fact of life, unfortunately.

    Hugs...Joni Marie



    Quote Originally Posted by kellycan27 View Post
    Gawd.. Where do you live? This is an innocent question, The police have more important things to do than hassle crossdressers.
    Last edited by Joni Marie Cruz; 05-23-2009 at 02:50 PM. Reason: add
    "Because equality is not a concept. It's not something we should be striving for. It's a necessity. Equality is like gravity. We need it to stand on this earth as men and women. And the misogyny that is in every culture is not a true part of the human condition. It is life out of balance, and that imbalance is sucking something out of the soul of every man and woman who's confronted with it."

    --Joss Whedon, to a reporter who asked, "So why do you create these strong women characters?"

  20. #20
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    really dont think there re any laws against crossdressing. i have been stopped by police in 2 differnet chicago suburbs. both officers were professional. although the female officer did have me get out of the car so she could check out my outfit. hehe. police see it all, and a crossdresser wont even phase them.

  21. #21
    happy to be her Sarah Doepner's Avatar
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    They don't need no stinking law against crossdressing

    There doesn't need to be a law against crossdressing for Law Enforcement to make your day a real challenge. There are lots of very vague laws concerning Public Indecency, Public Disorder, Obstructing Justice, False Information to Police, as well as the need to determine if you are any kind of a threat to commit a crime. Officers have a lot of discression if they want to get involved in your life and you are in a public place.

    Now, most of them are too busy and/or just don't care enough to go out of their way to do any of that, but it doesn't mean they can't. My suggestion is to behave yourself, don't drink and drive and if you become the subject of an officers attention, cooperate as best you can. Have your id ready to hand over, even if you don't like the picture. The statue books are very thick and they can be very creative in the application of some of those laws. Even if it is thrown out at a later date, your world has become miserable when all you wanted was to enjoy a little time out.
    Sarah
    Being transgender isn't a lifestyle choice. How you deal with it is.

  22. #22
    Down into the Easy Chair SweetCaroline's Avatar
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    If public crossdressing were against the law where I come from, I'd be serving three consecutive life sentences with no chance of parole.
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  23. #23
    Big Sister Nicki B's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by kellycan27 View Post
    This is an innocent question
    Actually I think it reinforces an unnecessary climate of fear - it feels more like scaremongering, to me..
    Nicki

    [SIZE="1"]Moi?[/SIZE]

  24. #24
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    Many local city hall websites have a listing of most of the local laws. that doesn't count county and other municipal laws though

  25. #25
    Swans have more fun! sandra-leigh's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by sterling12 View Post
    It's conceivable that they could apply such an ordinance, if they also had a law about "only gals in the female bathroom." But if you used that bathroom, if you got caught or arrested for it; it would be a very rare thing for a DA to take a case like that to Court. Would be an incredible waste of The Taxpayer's Money.
    I ran a previous thread in which I tried to get people to contribute [U]specific[/U} laws about cross-dressing. If I recall correctly, no-one had any (or was interested enough to bother.) I did specifically disprove one supposed one that you can find hanging around the net in the "silly laws" lists. Someone did point to a specific US state in which it is apparently illegal to use the washroom opposite the marker on your driver's license, and yet (at least in part of the state) also illegal to use the washroom opposite of the way you are presenting, but there were no citations provided there.

    I did find and cite a specific ordinance in a specific city that is still on the books and has to do with the use of washrooms at dance halls. It was, however, in a state that offered a number of state-wide protections, leaving it quite questionable as to whether the ordinance was enforceable.

    When I see a situation like that, what I see is an opportunity for the city police to harass and even charge cross-dressers, possibly even jailing them: if the state attorney that your lawyer reaches then tells the city police "You have to withdraw that charge, the ordinance violates state law", then the police then release you, mouth an apology, and you are pretty helpless to do anything about the indignity unless you are upset enough about it that you have a lawyer in the area run "discovery" against the police training and operations manual to prove that the state had specifically made it clear that the ordinance was in conflict and needed to be taken off of the books.

    Oh yes, I also pointed out at least one specific "anti-saggy-pants" law that discussion I read said was so vaguely worded as to make the law applicable to cross-dressing as well (I seem to recall it used that "appropriate to the sex" phrase rather than being gender-neutral in describing exactly what had to covered and what didn't have to be. Wouldn't want to stop the pretty young gals from wearing bikini bottoms, after-all....

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