Odd Laws Still on the Books
Fortune telling, junior licenses in the city, and a monkey for one kind of owner: real New York sections
Lists of strange state laws get passed around with no section number attached. Every one below has one, read from the state's consolidated laws.
Who handles this in New York: New York State Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service; and legal aid programs and the state offices, listed in the New York directory.
| The law | What it says | Breaking it |
|---|---|---|
| The lawFortune telling | What it saysClaiming to tell fortunes, or to use occult powers to answer questions, give advice on personal matters, or lift curses, for a fee, is a crime, unless it is done purely as entertainment or amusement. | Breaking itClass B misdemeanor |
| The lawA junior license in the city | What it saysA class DJ junior license does not allow driving in New York City at all. | Breaking itA license violation |
| The lawThe one lawful pet monkey | What it saysA person paralyzed from the neck down may keep a New World monkey trained by a nonprofit to help them, an exception to the ban on wild animals as pets. | Breaking itNot an offense |
| The lawChildren in a bar | What it saysA bar owner or employee may not let a child under sixteen in unless a parent or authorized adult is along, or for the nonprofit or school events the section names. | Breaking itClass B misdemeanor |
Many laws that sound strange are city or town laws rather than state law, and those differ from place to place; this page covers only the consolidated laws. Whether a particular act broke one of these sections is a question for a licensed New York attorney.
Sources for this section (4)
- Penal Law § 165.35 — Fortune telling
- Veh. & Traf. Law § 501 — Drivers licenses and learners permits
- Envtl. Conserv. Law § 11-0512 — Wild animals as pets prohibited
- Penal Law § 260.21 — Unlawfully dealing with a child in the second degree
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed New York attorney.