Wearing saggy pants could be illegal if S.C. bill becomes law
Several lawmakers want to ban people from wearing saggy pants in public in South Carolina.
The proposal would make it unlawful to do so if pants were worn too low, exposing “skin or undergarments.”
Violators would be subject to civil fines up to the following:
—$25 for a first offense.
— $50 or no more than three hours of community service or both for a second offense.
— $75 or no more than six hours of community service or both for a third or subsequent offense.
A violation wouldn’t be a criminal or delinquent offense, according to the bill. It wouldn’t be grounds for denying or taking away one’s financial assistance in state college or university programs.
Many people lambasted the proposal, questioning legislators’ priorities. Others said it’s racist.
The bill currently has apparent problems.
It refers to people being subject to fines but repeatedly defines the illegal act in terms of the male pronoun “his.” But Rep. Wendell Gilliard, D-Charleston, told WCIV-TV that indecent exposure would apply to women who wear “pants down by their ankles or below the waist.”
Gilliard was one of six lawmakers as of mid-Wednesday who requested to withdraw their names as sponsors of the bill.
The bill also defines the violation by wearing pants that sag more than three inches below the “crest of his ileum exposing his skin or undergarments.” According to “Essentials of Medical Assisting,” ileum refers to the intestinal area, whereas ilium refers to the hip area, even though they’re pronounced the same way.