Part 53.49 of the Los Angeles Municipal Code is a basic of lawyerly syntax and useless verbosity. It seems on an indication outdoors my native public library department and reads as follows:
“It shall be illegal for the proprietor or individual having custody of any canine to fail to right away take away and eliminate, in a sanitary method, by changing in a closed or sealed container and depositing in a trash receptacle, any feces deposited by such canine upon public or personal property, with out the consent of the general public or personal proprietor or individual in lawful possession of the property, apart from property owned or managed by the proprietor or individual having custody of such canine. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to a blind individual being accompanied by a information canine.”
Had been the legal professionals who wrote that paid by the phrase?
Does a canine actually “deposit” feces?
Is there an possible situation wherein somebody would ask for consent to depart their canine’s feces on another person’s property?
Opinion Columnist
Nicholas Goldberg
Nicholas Goldberg served 11 years as editor of the editorial web page and is a former editor of the Op-Ed web page and Sunday Opinion part.
I’m not a lawyer, but when I had been in cost the signal would simply say “Clear up after your canine,” with maybe an extra observe that failing to take action is illegitimate.
Nonetheless, once I acquired dwelling from the library the opposite day, I used to be curious. Was town’s municipal code extra amusing than I had beforehand realized? Was there extra entertaining gobbledygook in it or was Part 53.49 an outlier?
The L.A. Municipal Code, for individuals who don’t know, is the compendium of the regulatory and penal ordinances of town. Violations may get you fined and even tossed in jail. It was first adopted in 1936, although some provisions return additional. It has been amended regularly and runs to about six volumes.
I flipped by way of the code — on-line, in fact — to Part 53, and, to be trustworthy, I couldn’t cease studying. It’s the a part of the code that offers with “animals and fowls.” Different elements deal with public well being, public welfare, zoning, companies and visitors, amongst different issues. However I caught with animals and fowls.
Just some objects away from Part 53.49, I chanced on Part 53.47, which says:
“No individual shall let to a mare any stallion or jack, or let to a cow any bull, or let to a sow any boar, or let to a bitch any canine, or let to a nanny goat any goat, besides inside an enclosure so organized as to impede such animals fully from the view of all individuals outdoors such enclosure.“
For a second or two, I wasn’t positive what was meant by “let to.” What had been our metropolis’s leaders attempting to cover from view behind an enclosure? However then the sunshine bulb went on.
Does this even belong within the code? To my information there’s no present disaster involving boars and sows copulating in public view and offending the sensibilities of Angelenos. Moreover, didn’t generations of Individuals study intercourse by watching animals go at it on the farm? Was that so unhealthy? Little question this ordinance was adopted on the behest of some previous-era Ron DeSantis hoping to stamp out woke barnyard sex-ed.
The rule dates again at the least to the unique 1936 municipal code, based on the useful librarians on the L.A. Regulation Library. And presumably properly earlier than that.
It’s little question one in all many provisions which might be not related or enforced however stay on the books as a result of no person has bothered to take away them.
One other part of the code bans the feeding of pigeons — however not in all places within the metropolis. Solely right here:
“Starting on the intersection of the middle line of First Road with the middle line of Los Angeles Road; thence southwesterly alongside the middle line of Los Angeles Road to the middle line of Eighth Road; thence northwesterly alongside the middle line of Eighth Road to the middle line of Essential Road; thence southwesterly alongside the middle line of Essential Road to the middle line of Ninth Road; thence northwesterly alongside the middle line of Ninth Road to the middle line of Olive Road; thence northeasterly alongside the middle line of Olive Road to the middle line of Eighth Road; thence northwesterly… .”
The delineation of the no-feeding zone goes on for 100 extra phrases, alongside ninth, Flower and Figueroa, then again to Olive, over to 1st and right down to Los Angeles Road once more.
I notice that precision and specificity is crucial to the legislation, so I received’t complain about that. However why am I forbidden to feed a pigeon at Olive and 4th however permitted to take action with impunity at Grand and 4th? Did an influential foyer of Grand Road pigeon feeders carve out a privilege for themselves, or are the traces merely arbitrary?
A number of extra guidelines from the code:
—Bullfights are prohibited in L.A.
—It’s unlawful to promote ducklings underneath 4 weeks of age in portions lower than six.
—Wild, unique or harmful animals might not be exhibited at home events or loud or unruly gatherings.
What animals does town take into account wild, unique or harmful? The code specifies hippopotamuses, rhinoceroses, moose, giraffes, baboons and reptiles over 8 ft lengthy, amongst others.
So, in the event you stay within the metropolis of L.A. and you’ve got a hippopotamus and also you’re planning an unruly celebration, take into account your self warned.
When you’re at it, whenever you take it out, you may need to carry a extremely large sealed container to eliminate any mess it would deposit on a neighbor’s property. Until you’re blind, wherein case you may simply ignore it.
