Unusual Sex Laws: What the Statutes Actually Say
Article overview: Unusual Statutes Governing Intimate Conduct and Personal Freedoms
Unusual Statutes Governing Intimate Conduct and Personal Freedoms
Kentucky & London, Ontario: Kentucky law purportedly prohibits a woman from appearing on a public highway in a bikini unless accompanied by two law enforcement officers or in possession of a defensive weapon. Separately, a municipal ordinance in London, Ontario, is said to prohibit sexual activity on a parked motorcycle.
Michigan: State law contains a felony provision criminalizing the act of seducing or corrupting an unmarried woman.
Virginia & South Carolina: Certain jurisdictions within these states retain antiquated misdemeanor statutes that nominally criminalize consensual sexual relations between unmarried adults.
Utah: State law expressly prohibits engaging in sexual acts with animals when such conduct is undertaken for commercial gain — a statutory construction that has drawn attention for the inference it raises regarding non-commercial conduct.
Texas: Possession of more than six obscene devices of a specified nature is prohibited under state law.
Minnesota: A statute on the books prohibits sexual contact with live fish.
Sunday Restrictions and Miscellaneous Regulations
Hartford, Connecticut: A local ordinance is reported to prohibit a husband from kissing his wife on Sundays.
Florida: State law has historically prohibited unmarried women from engaging in parachuting on Sundays.
Michigan: Certain municipal codes have purportedly required a wife to obtain her husband’s consent before cutting her own hair.
Important source-checking warning
Unusual-law lists frequently repeat outdated, repealed, misquoted or nonexistent provisions. Treat every claim below as a lead rather than authority, and verify the current code, jurisdiction, effective date and enforcement history before relying on it.
Current legal analysis appears in the Law Updates archive.
Related reading: For related context, read BAC and Impaired-Driving Laws: A State-by-State Overview, Why Urine and Blood Drug Levels Do Not Prove Impairment, Commission on Judicial Performance Excerpts Concerning Judge Draper.
