Rocky Mount City Ordinance related to the Use of Parking Lots, Section 20-135
(a) Definitions. The term "parking lot" for the purposes of this section, means any area within the city on which more than five (5) automobiles may be parked and shall include public parking lots and those parking lots which are for the principal purpose of providing parking during business hours for shopping centers, stores, restaurants, drive-ins, theaters and other business or commercial establishments.
(b) Congregation on premises. It shall be unlawful for more than five (5) people to congregate on any one (1) parking lot in the city between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., if the closest part of the parking lot is within three hundred (300) feet of a private residence, except for the purpose of patronizing a business establishment which is actually open for business between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.
(c) Enumeration of offenses. It shall be unlawful for any person on a parking lot in the city between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., to do one (1) or more of the following:
(1) Talk in a loud or boisterous manner;
(2) Drink beer or any kind of alcoholic beverage;
(3) Throw any type of bottle, can, container, trash or paper on the parking lot;
(4) Use profanity or cursing in such a manner that those standing in the immediate vicinity of the person may hear the profanity or cursing;
(5) Make such noise or disturbance that persons living in homes or other dwelling accommodations within three hundred (300) feet of the parking lot are disturbed in their place of living and deprived of their peace and quiet.
(Code 1967, § 19-143)
My opinion: Can’t cuss in a parking lot? Well, SHIT! I don’t think these people go to the Rocky Mount Wall-Mart. But, the real question …can you cuss at the check out line at Wal-Mart and Foodlion? I’ve stood in line so long I though my milk would go out of date.
Another question: define cussing and profanity? Are we talking about the 7 George Carlin words? Or just words you’d hear in general conversations from your local “ministers”. Oh, there’s a back-story there. If you think your favorite clergy is anything less than human, go crawl back under your preverbal rock.
Famous George Carlin Quotes: http://blogzarro.com/2007/05/100-greatest-george-carlin-quotes/
