North Carolina Dumb Laws

Singing Off-Key

According to multiple sources, singing off-key in public in North Carolina could get you in legal trouble. The law reportedly dates back to concerns over disturbing the peace, especially during religious services. While we couldn’t find a direct statute with this specific language, it’s become a staple of strange law lists and may reflect an actual historical case or outdated ordinance. Whether it’s fact or folklore, you might want to keep your karaoke skills sharp just in case.

Don’t Plow with Elephants

It’s illegal to use elephants to plow cotton fields in North Carolina. While that may sound like a joke, the law likely originated to prevent traveling circuses from renting out their animals for side gigs, particularly ones involving heavy labor. The image of an elephant pulling a plow might be funny, but lawmakers apparently took no chances. Source

Theft of Used Grease

In North Carolina, stealing used cooking grease (yes, the stuff from deep fryers) is a felony if it’s worth over $1,000. The rise of biofuels has turned waste grease into a hot commodity, and thieves have taken notice. Lawmakers responded with serious penalties for anyone caught siphoning the oily treasure. It’s one of the more modern “weird” laws, but weird nonetheless. Source

Don’t Borrow Your Neighbor’s Mule

If you take someone else’s horse, mule, or dog in North Carolina (even if you mean to bring it back) you’re breaking the law. This statute dates to a time when work animals were essential property, and “borrowing” them could mean interfering with someone’s livelihood. These days, it’s a cautionary tale: always ask first. Source

Exemption for Possum Harassment

For years, the town of Brasstown, North Carolina, celebrated New Year’s Eve by lowering a live possum in a transparent box in a southern twist on the Times Square ball drop. The event sparked backlash from animal rights groups, so the state legislature stepped in and passed a law temporarily removing protections for possums from December 29 to January 2. That’s right: North Carolina legalized possum harassment for five days a year. The exemption was later repealed. Source