A Senate committee decided yesterday that Virginia's dignity is more important than exposed underwear.

In a hastily called meeting, the Senate Courts of Justice Committee voted unanimously to kill a measure that had made Virginia the butt of worldwide ridicule.

The measure, introduced by Del. Algie T. Howell, D-Norfolk, sought a $50 fine for people who display their underpants in "a lewd or indecent manner."

Howell said he was reacting to a fashion trend in which youngsters allow their pants to droop, so their boxers, briefs or thongs show.

The bill has been featured in the media in Great Britain, Germany, France and Australia. ABC News did a feature on it, as did the BBC. The London Guardian had a front-page story on the bill yesterday, and a group of senators gathered to read the story just before killing the measure.

Sen. Thomas K. Norment Jr., R-James City, said "the international exposure -- no pun intended" had left the impression that Virginia is preoccupied with low-rider pants, just as it is trying to attract visitors for the 400th anniversary of the Jamestown settlement in 2007.

While Norment said he thinks he has a sense of humor, he said of the ridicule: "I find that an indignation which dampens my humor."

He suggested that Howell, serving his first term in the House of Delegates, made a freshman mistake and should have gotten better advice.

Sen. Kenneth W. Stolle, R-Virginia Beach, chairman of the courts committee, said he called the unscheduled meeting because "this bill has become a distraction."

"This has become an international embarrassment, and I didn't want to allow this perception to go on any longer," Stolle said later.

Howell was invited to attend -- a usual courtesy -- but was not present when his bill was killed.

Stolle said Howell had been summoned while the House was in recess and chose not to come.

Howell, after consulting with Del. Franklin P. Hall, of Richmond, the House Democratic leader, issued a brief statement expressing regret that the Senate had taken action in his absence.

He said the House was debating the budget bill when he was notified about the meeting. He could not leave when "the most important vote of the session was taken," he said.

When notified a second time, he had only seven minutes left in a recess -- not time enough to explain his bill, he said.

By coincidence, the Senate committee took its action in front of about 70 seniors from Surry County High School, who were on a field trip to Richmond. There wasn't a stitch of underwear in sight as the seniors listened attentively.

Senior Devin Stith, a cousin of former University of Virginia basketball star Bryant Stith, called the bill "ridiculous." But "Coach is strict about what we wear," added Stith, who also is a basketball player.

James O. Towey, an assistant attorney general in the criminal division, told the committee that while the bill's language was probably constitutional, enforcing it would not only be impractical, but also might raise constitutional questions. Lewdness usually implies a sexual connotation, he said, and just "letting your boxers hang out" does not do that.

"A style of dress is an expression and that might raise some First Amendment concerns," he said. The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution allows freedom of speech.

In his statement, Howell said he introduced the bill in response to "a number of my constituents who found this to be a very important issue to them."

The low-rider style has been popularized by hip-hop entertainers and favored by teenage boys. One legislator said the measure could lead to profiling of African-American males.

The House of Delegates voted 60-34 Tuesday in favor of the bill, but few expected it to survive the staid Senate. Delegates who favored it said it was another way to slow the "coarsening of culture."
 

Contact Tyler Whitley at (804) 649-6780 or twhitley@timesdispatch.com

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