Re: Woman cited for yelling obscenities at toilet in her home

mikesmith9999@hotmail.com wrote:
> It would have more simple if someone had read what she is accused of.
> I think the following is very clear.
>
> QUOTE
>
> According to the Crime Code of Pennsylvania, disorderly conduct is
> about using "obscene language" that can affect " neighborhood."
>
> UNQUOTE

What if the "affect" is positive ?

>
> http://www.wnep.com/Global/story.asp?Sr28422&nav=menu158_2
>
> Woman Cited for Foul Mouth
>
>
>
> Wednesday, October 17, 5:24 p.m.
> By Josh Brogadir
>
> A Scranton woman accused of cursing at her overflowing commode was
> overheard by a neighbor and it landed her in court in ackawanna County
> Wednesday.
>
> There are two versions of the story. One is from a mother frustrated
> by her overflowing toilet who had some choice words as she tried to
> fix it. The other is from a police report that alleges the words
> flowed out the window to the ears of children in the neighborhood.
>
> Dawn Herb arrived at a magistrate's office in west Scranton to plead
> not guilty to a disorderly conduct citation against her. That part of
> the case was as simple as signing her name and getting a hearing date.
>
> The rest of this story has not been that simple.
>
> It stems from an admitted case of cursing in her bathroom last
> Thursday night with waste flowing from her toilet and leaking into the
> kitchen on the first floor.
>
> "I know nothing about toilets so I did my best and unfortunately we
> don't have the best language when we're upset, but am I a criminal?
> No. I'm just a single mom who had a situation that had to be taken
> care of," Herb said, adding she was able to fix the toilet.
>
> The window of her second-floor bathroom was open as she voiced her
> displeasure with the overflowing toilet.
>
> "A police officer who did not tell me he was a police officer just
> yelled, 'shut the f up.' I yelled back, 'mind your f'in business.'
> That's as far as it went," Herb recounted.
>
> The police report does not say that the police officer cursed back. It
> states that her neighbor, off-duty Officer Patrick Gilman, told her to
> "Watch her mouth, there's young children in the neighborhood."
>
> He then called police.
>
> Public safety director Ray Hayes is in charge of Scranton's police
> department. He would not talk to the specifics of the case, but said
> interpretation of the law plays a big part in this type of offense.
>
> "In the more minor type arrests that you're involved in, the more
> discretion that is available to you. Whether you were going to give a
> verbal warning, a written warning, a citation, there is a considerable
> amount of discretion," Hayes explained.
>
> Dawn Herb said the American Civil Liberties Union, of ACLU, has agreed
> to defend her on the grounds that it is not illegal to swear at a
> police officer.
>
> According to the police report, that is not why she was charged.
>
> According to the Crime Code of Pennsylvania, disorderly conduct is
> about using "obscene language" that can affect " neighborhood."
>
> Dawn Herb's hearing on the citation is scheduled for next month.
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