The great June Watanabe of the Star Bulletin's storied "Kokua Line" column blows one of the worst kept secrets of island beachgoers: No law bans women from going topless.
It boils down to the definition of genitals (and the perfectly reasonable parallel in the acceptability of public breast feeding). But, in fact, depending on how you define what "conduct is likely to cause affront," even being completely in the buff could squeak under the legal wire. It's not what you do, but how you do it, as it were.
There is no state or city law prohibiting women from baring their breasts in public, acknowledged Capt. Carlton Nishimura, of the Honolulu Police Department. He double-checked with the city Prosecutor's Office to make sure.
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