Many adults aren't shy to tell today's teenagers that they are lazy, but local New Jersey police actually told two high schoolers to stop going door-to-door to offer to shovel snow.
On their day off from school Matt Molinari and Eric Schnepf, both 18, learned a thing or two about government relations.
Bound Book County in N.J. has a law against unlicensed solicitors and peddlers, which is why the police stopped the teens.
Molinari and Schnepf weren't issued a ticket for their apparent crime. Police Chief Michael Jannone told My Central New Jersey that the police's biggest concern was about them being outside during dangerous conditions - not that they were unlicensed.
"We don't make the laws but we have to uphold them," Jannone said Tuesday after reading some online comments about the incident. "This was a state of emergency. Nobody was supposed to be out on the road."
The teens were understanding and told My Central New Jersey that they were still allowed to shovel, but could only do so if residents called them. If they wanted to go door-to-door they would have needed apply for a license that can cost as much as $450 for permission that is valid for only 180 days. (Nonprofits are exempt from the fee but must still apply for a permit.)
"The cops were nice about it. They weren't jerks. They were trying to make sure everything is OK," Molinari told My Central Jersey.
The teens still managed to get five shoveling jobs done by Tuesday afternoon and make more than $100 total.
