Connecticut: Where it’s Legal to Hang Whatever From Our Rearview

Hey fuzzy dice, Magic Tree, and rosary bead-enthusiasts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York:  Move to Connecticut, we let you hang anything (Within reason) from your rearview mirror here.

Did you know that it is illegal to hang objects from your rearview mirror in ten states in the US? Three of Connecticut's closest neighboring states: New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania prohibit hanging items from your vehicle's rearview mirror. The other states with prohibitions are Texas, Minnesota, California, Colorado, Illinois, and Virginia.

My mom drove Connecticut for most of the early 2000's with her handicapped parking tag partially blocking her view of the road, and that is exactly why some of our neighboring states have laws prohibiting items on the rearview. According to AAA.com, an unimpeded view of the road is the main reason why the prohibitions are in place in some states, while others have enacted laws that issue citations and assign liability in the event of a crash in which the at-fault driver's view was impeded by hanging objects.

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Why is it legal to hang what you want here in Connecticut, within reason? According to a Connecticut Supreme Court ruling in 2010, it is only illegal to hang whatever it is you want from your vehicles rearview mirror if it blocks your vision or otherwise distracts you. I've never witnessed anyone driving around with a 20-pound ham dangling, but there are some rosary bead collections out there that may get you pulled over.