Philadelphia police arrested some folks for using a raft to get around Main Street in Manayunk when it was flooded:
When Dray asked why the men were being arrested, he said the officers replied, “for lack of common sense.â€
No charges were filed against the boaters.
And I’m guessing the reason for that is there are no charges to be filed, because there’s no law against row, row, rowing your boat.
Hat Tip to SayUncle, who has several more examples of stuff like this.
Seems to me, that, under the “lack of common sense” clause you could arrest most of the PPD, all of City Council, the Mayor, the entire parking authority, Bob Brady, Chaka Fattah, and Bryan Lentz.
Sounds like “lack of common sense” on the part of the police involved, nothing like being sued for violating an individual’s rights. Can you detain a person who has not commited a crime?
Lack of common sense?
It seems like using a boat in the water is the definition of common sense….
Rafting down Main Street is an unwritten crime in Manayunk, apparently.
Ya know, I hate to break it to the coppers, but there is no such charge as “Criminal Stupidity” in any jurisdiction that I am aware of. Nor is there a charge for “Contempt of Cop”.
Philly PD sure likes to hook and book for both of those, though, don’t they?
I don’t know. I remember my concealed weapons instructor, a Sonoma County deputy sheriff, explaining that there are really only two laws: misdemeanor stupid and felony stupid.
But lack of common sense as an arrestable offense would dramatically expand the prison population of this country.
The cops could have probably gotten them at least a ticket on one or several infractions along the lines of “operating a vehicle on a public roadway without proper licensing, lights, signaling equipment” or something.
Heck if they turned a corner and failed to signal there’s a ticket right there.
Not saying they should have, but there’s no reason not to think outside the box.
@ Clayton E. Cramer: Your CCW Instructor has a point, that I largely agree with. When I was on, I’d observed that the only laws we need are A**holery and Stupidity. And I grant that rafting in the flood waters going down your street does not indicate they’re a serious threat for this year’s Nobel Prize.
I guess what I object to is the modern-day badge-heavy tendency to redefine “Stupid” as “Whatever offends my eye at the moment.” *sigh* Oh, well…
Lucky they didn’t get caught by the EPA. Operating a vessel on a navigable waterway without the proper impact assessments is a major no no.