Law Humor

So Much For "No Cussing" Week

By John Mesirow

No offense (really) to the kid who started all of this "no cussing" stuff (notice I didn't say "shit" - doh!), but really, are words in and of themselves "bad?" Has the word "shit," by itself, ever hurt anyone? What about "You're fat" or "You're ugly" or "You're stupid?"

Off my soapbox, and on to Mr. Anthony Ruano, who probably wishes I were King. Seems that young Mr. Ruano (age 18) had an argument with his dad, then headed across the street, spray paint in hand. On the wall of the building facing his dad's house, he wrote a 7-foot-long message - "Fuck You." Unfortunately for Mr. Ruano, that building WAS AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.

As luck (bad) would have it, Mr. Ruano chose to do this during Los Angeles County's "No Cussing Week." Per The Contra Costa Times, Ruano finds himself prosecuted under a City Attorney's Office plan to work to improve safety and security at the city's school campuses.... [He] was charged with one count of vandalism and could go to jail for a year and pay up to $10,000 in fines if convicted. It's pathetic, but props to The Contra Costa Times for at least saying the graffiti rhymed with "Muck
Goo," placing it one notch above the legions of "expletive deleted" censors.

Full post as published by Legal Juice on March 06, 2009 (boomark / email).