Fashion used to be just a form of expression, and depending on how you dressed, you could be associated with the nerds, the divas, the jocks, the preps, or the just plain weird people. Now, one southern Florida mayor wants to add “criminals” to the list of fashion genres --- the apparent title given to anyone whose baggy pants shows a glimpse of their drawers. Though a judge has already ruled a so-called “Baggy Pants Law” unconstitutional, the mayor’s fight isn’t over yet.
Last year, Riviera Beach Mayor Thomas Masters lobbied heavily to citizens to propose a law prohibiting people from wearing over-sized pants. “We have many people who are fearful of moving around in the city because of this particular type of dress. As you know, it is often associated with violence, gang activity…” he said. The message worked, and in March 2008, 72% of residents voted to pass the ordinance. Those saggy drawers were just too terrifying.
Opponents of the new law believed that it was racially motivated, as young black men are often perceived as the target offenders who commit crimes and wear sagging pants. Those who voted for the law pointed to the man who kicked it all off, Mayor Masters, himself a black man, and an advocate against violence, juvenile injustice, racism, and poverty. However, Mayor Masters is also a Baptist Bishop who began his ministry at the age of 4, and has only been involved in politics since being elected mayor in 2007.
First the pants, next armed robbery...
A few other cities in states from Georgia and Illinois to New Jersey and Michigan have similar laws against baggy clothing, though none with fines as severe as in Riviera Beach. (OhMyGov! has covered these curious cases here and here.)
The Baggy Pants Law carried some pretty hefty penalties: $150 or community service for a first offense, $300 or more community service for a second offense. Repeat offenders faced up to 60 days in jail. In less than a year, 15-20 offenders have been charged with "violating the law."
One such offender, Julius Hart, 18, stands out for receiving the most severe of charges. Last September, Hart and a few friends were biking around town when police pulled them over for exposing their boxers underneath their drooping pants. As Hart was already on probation for marijuana possession as a juvenile, police immediately arrested him, booked him as an adult, and left him in the county jail overnight without bond.
A city attorney tried to convince Judge Laura Johnson of a nearby Palm Beach Gardens court that criminals can hide weapons in baggy pants, making the extra large clothing a danger to the city. In turn, Hart’s public defender argued that the law violated the 14th Amendment’s freedom of expression and due process. In addition, he made the point that criminals can really only hide weapons in baggy pants if they wear a baggy shirt over the pants. Aha! Pregnant women beware: those loose fitting shirts will soon be on the chopping block.
Since the law only applied to low-slung pants that show skin or underwear, and not baggy shirts, Judge Johnson ruled that the city attorney could not prove that Hart was carrying a weapon, nor could he prove Hart was a danger to the city. She threw out the law, ruling that it had no constitutional basis.
Perhaps it’s because the young men who wear baggy pants don’t attend the bishop/mayor’s church services, or perhaps Masters wishes he could create a true fashion police. Whatever the reason, he is unhappy with the ruling, and does not intend to stop his most important of crusades against style. Mayor Masters will ask the city attorney for an appeal, but only if voters believe he should do so, he says. He plans to hold a series of town hall meetings regarding the matter before making any legal decisions. And if that doesn't work, there's always a good old-fashioned stoning.
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