Summary: Alabama Code 3-1-20 bars the sell of domestic animals or fowl between sunset and sunrise, though this law may be a thing of the past soon if Representative Nordgren's bill succeeds.
It is illegal for non-stores to sell animals in Alabama between sunset and sunrise (barring the passage of 2014's HB5)
BLOT: (12 Feb 2014 - 03:49:24 PM)
It is illegal for non-stores to sell animals in Alabama between sunset and sunrise (barring the passage of 2014's HB5)
Since we've had two snow days, I've taken to doing that thing where I randomly search the Internet looking for knowledge. Last night, and today, this has involved looking up Alabama laws and current bills getting voted on in the Alabama House and Senate. A side effect of this is that I find stuff like [2014] HB5, sponsored by Becky Nordgren, Representative from 29th District, the synopsis reads:
Under existing law, a person who sells or purchases any domestic animal or domestic fowl between the hours of sunset and sunrise is guilty of a misdemeanor. The law does not apply to merchants or grocers.
This bill would repeal this criminal statute.
(source: http://alisondb.legislature.state.al.us/acas/ACASLoginfire.asp [you'll have to search for it by either HB5 or by Representative Nordgren])
The bill is referring to 3-1-20 of the 1975 Code of Alabama, "Sale or purchase of domestic animals or fowl between sunset and sunrise", which reads:
Any person who shall sell or buy any domestic animal or domestic fowl between the hours of sunset and sunrise shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than $50.00 nor more than $500.00 and may also be sentenced to hard labor for the county for a period not exceeding one year; provided, however, that this section shall not apply to merchants, grocers or market men, who have a fixed place of business, selling to consumers, when the sales are made at such place of business.
And I repeat, just in case you missed my emphasis, that not only is it [currently] illegal to sell animals [domestic ones] at night if you aren't at a store, but it is a misdemeanor that could be punished by up to a year of hard labor. What the hell triggered this becoming a law? And, how can I turn it into a horror story...hmmmm...
OTHER BLOTS THIS MONTH: February 2014
dickens of a blog
Written by Doug Bolden
For those wishing to get in touch, you can contact me in a number of ways
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
The longer, fuller version of this text can be found on my FAQ: "Can I Use Something I Found on the Site?".
"The hidden is greater than the seen."
