There are some ridiculous laws out there,
and you wouldn’t believe some of the things that are outlawed. But even more strange are the things that
aren’t illegal. Here are twenty things you won’t believe
are legal in the United States. #20. Owning a Monkey Did you ever watch reruns of Friends and think
“I wish I could have a capuchin monkey for a pet like Ross”? Well, wonder no more! Exotic animals aren’t what people normally
think of as pet materials, and they may be rare - but they’re not illegal! Only twenty-two states ban owning monkeys,
although some have special permits required. Oregon even allows owning a monkey as a service
animal who can go anywhere with you, and there are training programs to train capuchin monkeys
to assist people who are paralyzed. Those little hands are good for more than
snatching treats from your cabinet. But they’re not the only exotic animals
you can keep as pets in some states. #19. Owning Dangerous Wildlife While some animals are regulated from import
due to their status as endangered or invasive species, for the most part animal laws are
left up to the states. That means whichever state you enter, you
might be entering a wild kingdom. Almost all states allow people to own large
snakes, tarantulas, and scorpions. Five states allow people to own alligators
- without even requiring permits! Always wanted a giraffe? Head down Florida way. If you’re a fan of wild cats, tigers, lions,
and cheetahs are legal in a select few states - just make sure they’re well fed. And fans of Yogi Bear should probably head
to Massachusetts, where they can have a picnic with their very own pet bear. But what if you don’t want to own unusual
animals? What if you want to eat them? #18. Eating Lassie, Garfield, or Mr. Ed If there are three animals Americans love,
its their cats, dogs, and horses. Two are beloved household pets, and the other
is a noble steed - and can occasionally win you a lot of money at the racetrack. So it’s not a surprise that the slaughtering
and sale of these animals for food is banned. But what isn’t banned is eating them. It would have to be a private transaction
with no money exchanged, or an animal you owned, but if you really have that craving,
it is totally legal to indulge it. Just don’t expect the family pets to look
you in the eye when you come home after your secretive dinner. Some people’s taste in meat, though, is
a bit more wild. #17. Eating Roadkill Mmm-mmm! Well, at least you know it’s fresh meat
when you just saw it wandering across the road a few minutes ago, right? Most people don’t think “Good eatin’”
when they just saw a raccoon or armadillo meet their end in a car accident, but it has
a big cult following, with recipes abounding for harvested wild animals. There are concerns about parasites and other
diseases coming from the untreated meat, which is why it’s illegal in Texas, California,
and Washington - but otherwise, go to town. And Montana even specifically passed a law
guaranteeing your right to fill your belly with roadkill. But that doesn’t mean the food you buy at
the store is entirely safe. #16. Arsenic - In Your Food? You’ve probably eaten a little bit of arsenic
in many of the most common foods including rice, seafood, apples, and any fruit grown
without pesticides. Arsenic is considered one of the deadliest
chemicals out there, packing toxins that can increase your risk for cancer and damage your
heart with consistent exposure. That’s why the European Union banned the
chemical in their food products - but the US didn’t follow suit. Instead, the FDA set maximum levels allowed
in food products - which is supposedly safe, but a lot of people worry about eating it
constantly. But these next legal food additives can cause
some...uncomfortable side effects. #15. Olestra and Maltitol People love to cut calories, especially when
it means they can eat more of their favorite things. So when low-calorie potato chips made with
a chemical fat substitute came out, there was excitement all around! Olestra seemed to be a miracle substance - except
for one unfortunate side effect. It caused digestive distress in anyone who
ate too much - leading to its ban in the European Union and Canada. But in the US, it joins the sugar alcohol
Maltitol as a low-calorie additive that can wreak havoc on your digestive system - but
remains legal. Care to chase those fat-free potato chips
with some sugar-free gummy bears? To go with food, you’ll need some drink
- but be careful if you’re underage. #14. Drinking Underage - Kind Of The drinking age has been twenty-one for several
decades in the United States - leading to a boom in fake IDs for college students. But it’s not so clear-cut everywhere, and
exceptions abound. Five states don’t allow any exceptions,
but a majority of states let minors drink on private property with their parents around. Half the states let minors drink for religious
reasons - such as the Passover Seder, where four cups of wine are part of the religious
rite. Eleven states even allow minors to drink for
educational reasons, so culinary school might look a lot more inviting to some kids. After a few drinks, it might be time to head
to the casino. #13. Counting Cards You’ve seen it countless times on TV - the
sneaky card counter is cheating the casino, but the security team is wise to him and they
grab him, escort him out without his money, and maybe rough him up a little on the way. But this is mostly fiction. In fact, card counting is legal - after all,
all the gambler is doing is using their mind to increase their odds, not cheating. But you’re on private property, and while
you can’t be arrested for it, that doesn’t mean the security team can’t throw you out
in Vegas. But in Atlantic City, a State Supreme Court
ruling made it fair play - and it’s open season for those with sharp eyes. But some surprisingly legal things are closer
to home. #12. Marrying Your Stepsibling Imagine, your single mom has gotten engaged,
and now it’s time to meet the family. You meet your new future stepdad - and his
kid, who is roughly the same age as you and happens to be the person you’ve had a crush
on for years. Awkward. Guess that puts the kibosh on that potential
relationship, right? Wrong. While there’s definitely a family connection
now, no state considers stepsiblings to be legal family for the purposes of sexual relations
and marriage. So feel free to live out those “hot stepsibling”
fantasies - just maybe not when the folks are around. But it’s not the only family connection
that’s legal. #11. Marrying Your Cousin? When people talk about marrying their cousin,
most people probably hear the banjo music in their heads. It’s definitely frowned upon by a lot of
people, but it’s actually not as illegal as you might think. A majority of US states allow people to marry
their first cousin - their aunt or uncle’s child - which might make for some awkward
family reunions. While the other states have restrictions,
like requiring first cousins to be over sixty-five when they marry in Arizona, all fifty states
allow second cousins to marry. From marriage to funerals, it’s always possible
to keep things local. #10. Backyard Graves So Great-Uncle Lester passed away, and left
you his house, but there’s one problem - he always swore to haunt anyone who ever made
him leave his house, and you’re not sure if you want to chance it. The good news is that it might be completely
legal to bury him right there in the backyard. Most states allow this as long as all zoning
laws are followed. Just treat it like a standard construction
project - instead of hollowing out the backyard for a pool, you’re doing it for a coffin. Every state has different laws, but if the
conditions are safe, most states will authorize a backyard burial. But some unexpected laws deal with the aftermath
of birth, not death. #9. Refusing Vaccines for a Child Vaccines have nearly eradicated a wide range
of childhood diseases, including Measles, Mumps, and Polio. But not everyone is on board with these shots
- and not just because they’re painful. A bunch of parents have started worrying about
the chemicals and metals inside the vaccines, with some claiming they can cause disorders
like autism. Authorities have said these refusals endanger
the public and constitute medical neglect, but most states still allow parents to claim
religious exemptions for vaccines - which means they’re allowed to send their kids
to school unvaccinated. That’s not the only time parents make some
questionable child-rearing decisions. #8. Baby-Walkers There’s nothing cuter than a baby scooting
around under their own power for the first time - so it’s not a surprise that some
parents have tried to rush that process a little. Baby walkers were invented with the best of
intentions, helping children learn how to walk with wheeled devices that let them move
with very little leg power. But medical experts believe this may actually
slow down muscle development by discouraging independent walking - and they may also be
dangerous by letting babies move fast to perilous locations like stairs. This led the walkers to be banned in Canada
- but not in the United States. When it comes to babies, it’s surprisingly
easy to accidentally put them in danger - but that hasn’t stopped these laws. #7. Leaving a Baby in the Car Most parents know it’s dangerous to leave
a baby in the car for even a short time during a hot summer day. But what about the cool fall or a moderate
winter? Leaving a baby in the car may seem risky,
but it’s not illegal in 31 states. What is illegal, though, is child endangerment
- so if anything goes wrong, like an unexpected car theft with the baby still there, the parent
could be prosecuted. In 19 states, it’s illegal no matter what,
but in the rest of them - well, any parent had just better hope things go smoothly and
there isn’t a person with 300 coupons in the express lane. But these next laws probably won’t hurt
the parents more than the kids - no matter what they claim. #6. Spanking and Corporal Punishment While some countries have taken steps to ban
spanking, claiming it’s detrimental to kids’ development, it’s still legal in all fifty
states - and that includes the much feared meeting with dad’s belt. Every state has different regulations about
what’s going too far. More surprisingly, though, corporal punishment
at schools is still legal in nineteen US states - almost all in the American south and west. And you thought detention was bad. The traditional paddling of boarding school
movies is still a reality for kids in the Bible Belt and other states. A lot of other things you might assume were
illegal are actually all-clear. #5. Sleeping in Your Car If you’ve had a long time on the road and
there isn’t a convenient hotel anywhere, it might be tempting to just catch some shut-eye
in your car. And this is legal in almost all states - as
long as you’re not drunk. Despite it being better to sleep in your car
than drive it when you’re drunk, it’s illegal to be in your car at all if you’ve
had one too many. But in fourteen states, sleeping in your car
might be a bit easier. These states - most of which are along highways
popular with long-haul truckers - let you sleep in your car at roadside rest stops. But this next car non-crime might give some
people an eyeful. #4. Driving Naked Your car is your property, and that means
you can do whatever you want in it within reason. And much like you can get naked in your home,
you can get naked in your car - even though sitting on those leather seats naked won’t
be a comfortable experience. But there’s one problem with this nude driving
adventure. Just make sure to have your clothing back
on when you get in or out of the car. Because while you can be naked inside your
car, as soon as you’re outside it, that’s public indecency - and it’s right off to
jail in some less than flattering prison clothes. And while driving, you may want to save yourself
some money. #3 Using Radar Detectors We’ve probably all been there. You’re driving through a sleepy little town,
you inch one mile over the speed limit - and suddenly a cop car is right behind you writing
you a hefty ticket. The good news is, there’s a way to avoid
that - with laser detectors that will alert you when a speed trap is lurking. While cops likely don’t like these devices
much, they’re legal in all states besides Virginia and Washington DC for security reasons. Laser jammers, which prevent radars from picking
up your speed, are more controversial - but are still legal in forty states. This next one is one of the cruelest things
you can do - but it’s not illegal. #2. Misrepresenting Yourself Online As relationships move to the online world,
this has become so common there’s even a word for it - Catfishing. People get involved with someone online, with
only a picture and their words to go off - and then they turn out to be someone completely
different. There’s even a series where an investigative
team finds out the truth about these online personalities’ actual identities called
- you guessed it - Catfish. But as cruel as it can be to lie to someone,
it’s only illegal if it’s done to defraud someone out of money. Otherwise, let the smitten online beware. But no non-crime shocks people as much as
this next one. #1. Tearing Off the Mattress Tag It says so right there! Do not tear the tag off under penalty of law! Surely if you touch it, the FBI is coming
for you, right? Well...not quite. That tag is accurate - but it’s not for
you. It’s for the seller and only the seller,
so its origin can be tracked for any potential recalls or quality issues. But once you purchase it, feel free to cut
it off. The only consequence is that you can’t re-sell
that mattress legally - but there isn’t much of a market for used mattresses anyway. This is probably a big relief to scissor-wielding
kids everywhere. For more obscure laws, check out “Illegal
Things That YOU Do Every Day”, or check out “20 US Foods You Never Knew Were Illegal
to Eat” for how US laws affect your diet.
