Using profanity can get you fined and even arrested in Myrtle Beach, where swearing is considered an offense.
Under the lewd, obscene and profane language ordinance, which is part of the city’s disorderly conduct offense, it is a misdemeanor to use any language that could provoke a violent reaction from another person, The Sun News reported.
City of Myrtle Beach spokesman Mark Kruea explained that the ordinance was in place to govern how people reacted to one another in heated situation.
“There is an expectation of a certain amount of propriety in a public place,” he said. “People get excited from time to time. There are limits, I think, to how excited one can be and how much expressive behavior one can share with the public without infringing on somebody else’s right.”
Last year, 289 tickets were issued to people contravening the ordinance, with the city bringing in $22,161 in citations – money which gets pumped back into the city’s general fund to finance various departments.
In a statement issued by Bryan Murphy of Myrtle Beach Police Department, he explained that several examples of unlawful words were listed under the ordinance.
The penalty for using them could include either a $500 fine or 30 days in jail, WPDE reported. The average cost for an infraction was $77.
“We encourage everyone to avoid violating this ordinance by speaking to others with the same respect and kindness he or she deserves,” Murphy said.
Weighing in on the matter, policing expert and attorney Scott MacLatchie explained that a police officer is considered a government official and therefore are not supposed to make an arrest if targeted by profane language as it was a violation of free speech.
"There is a serious Constitutional issue with that, with the U.S. Supreme Court,” he said, according to WSOC-TV.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.