The Chief of Police of Flint, Michigan has released a memo stating the following:

Due to a significant number of complaints from citizens regarding youths and adults "sagging" wearing pants and/or shorts below their waist and indecently exposing their buttocks, it is necessary that we enforce the law concerning disorderly person(s), only when sworn officers observe this misdemeanor.

This immoral "self expression" goes beyond free speech; it rises to the crime of indecent exposure/disorderly persons.

Therefore, any sworn officer who observes a person or persons committing indecent exposure (sagging/exposing buttocks) within the City of Flint jurisdiction has probable cause to effect a misdemeanor arrest for the following ordinance violation. Ordinance #3192 Section 31-12 (o) Disorderly Person may be written as a means to enforce the law.

David R. Dicks
Chief of Police

Now, the Flint Police have done an amazing job reducing crime in Flint.  It may have something to do with the fact that most of the population has fled the state or have been killed off, but I digress.  It had been known as one of the worst cities in the Nation for violent crime.  Here are some statistics from 2006.



Violent crime has fallen quite a bit in the last 2 years, but it is still quite bad.  Now, attention is going to be focused on an annoying but pretty superficial aspect of Flint culture.

First, a bit of history.  The trend of wearing 'saggy pants' as they are called here began in the jails where the inmates are not given belts to wear (it provides them a means of escape .... from life).  The 'inmate look' is then imitated by future jailbird wanna-be's and a fashion revolution is thus started.

The Chief has two problems with his memo.  First, he calls the look immoral "self expression."  By making this moral judgment, he is opening himself up to criticism on his objectivity to enforce existing laws.  He will receive the attention of groups like the ACLU, who seem to find Constitutional 'rights' for anything under the sun (except gun ownership, of course).  Second, this pronouncement trivializes all the progress that has been made to reduce crime in Flint.  ABC news reports this year that murder rates dropped 71% and assault rates dropped 48%.

I know it would be hard for the Chief to say "if they look like little hoodlums, find a reason to check them out," but this memo probably won't bring the Flint Police the attention they wanted.