Westside : OFF WITH THEIR . . .
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When some teen-aged girls encountered a nude man on Santa Monica beach recently, they called the police. Then they found out it wasn’t against the law to be naked in a public place in Santa Monica.
The city’s legal staff was puzzled. They checked the books. Sure enough, there was no anti-nudity law. Instead, they found that it was against the law to change clothes in a car, and they found that state law banned “lewd conduct.” But it was completely legal to walk, sit or lie around nude in Santa Monica.
Until now.
The City Council this week passed a law that provides the legal fig leaf that the city needed. Officially, it goes into effect 30 days from July 25.
Of course, some forms of nudity remain completely legitimate in Santa Monica. Children under age 10 may frolic au naturel , and nursing mothers need not worry about their breasts being exposed.
And a close reading of the new ordinance suggests that thong bikinis--which reveal, well . . . you know--pass muster too.
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