Busted! My 4 Year Old Daughter, Busted by Cops for Selling Lemonade in Coralville Iowa

| July 29, 2011

In only took 4 years for my daughter to enter into a life of crime.

Like many parents, we would like to teach our daughter about money, business, and the value of hard work.  What better way to teach such values than with an old fashioned roadside lemonade stand.  So that is what we set out to do.

About 30 mins after setting up her lemonade stand on the corner, an officer approached and shut down the stand.  In all fairness, the officer was very nice and apologetic and said, “I really don’t want to do this, but my chief sent me over to shut you down.”

CRIMINAL!

I’ve occasionally heard stories of officers or other city’s officials shutting down children’s lemonade stands in other towns, but it always seems so far away.  I always thought to myself, ‘wow, don’t they have better things to do?  I’m glad my town isn’t like that.’  But I guess I was wrong, Coralville Iowa, home of the nanny state.

This comes on the heels of another nanny state news article from Des Moines Iowa.  Earlier this month a family’s garage sale was shut down for lacking a sales tax permit.  City and to some extent state code indicates that you can only have 2 garage sales in a year, to have a third requires a sales tax permit, and evidently someone is keeping track.

Similar stories have made Reason TV’s nanny of the month reports in the last few years:

Aug 2010

June 2011

Coralville and Des Moines, do you really have nothing better to do than bust lemonade stands and garage sales? Give me a break!

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About the Author ()

Dustin Krutsinger is a 3rd year medical student at the University of Iowa.  He met his wonderful wife at church when they were 16 and were united in marriage at 19. He is the proud father of one daughter, Abigail and a son Jacob.  He and his wife attended nursing school together before he started medical school. They plan on using their medical training to serve others overseas full time after his training is complete. In the mean time, they have gone on several construction and medical trips to South Africa, Namibia, Zambia, Peru, and most recently Afghanistan in 2009. Once a month Dustin has the opportunity to lead the service and give a message at a local retirement home. Dustin considers himself to be a “Christian Libertarian.”  He is unapologetically, and absolutely 100% pro-life.  Dustin is a Ron Paul supporter, and credits his run for revitalizing Dustin's interest in politics. He has recently been an activist for liberty in the Iowa City area with Campaign for Liberty. He also ran for the Iowa House in 2010 as a Libertarian. It was a somewhat symbolic run, as no third party has ever been elected to the Iowa legislature, but it allowed him to discuss limited government solutions to our current problems as well as gave people another option, as the incumbent was running unopposed.
  • Gabbygwenhwyfar

    WHY??  What is wrong with a lemonade stand?  Is it the food, the money,??  HOW exactly did a police chief KNOW she had a stand?  What in the world?  If someone reported this – WHY do we have crime at all?  WHY aren’t the criminals reported and cracked down upon?  Mercy me…. this is un-real.

  • http://www.facebook.com/belikebunce Wm Luke Priest

    Did you submit this to the Press Citizen too?

  • http://www.facebook.com/belikebunce Wm Luke Priest

    I would have looked my “Chief” in the eye and told him to get out of his chair and go shut down Little Miss Krutsinger’s lemonade stand myself.  ”I have more important jobs to attend to sir.”

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_QN3ECSWYNLWL63N6QSCYS2SGXU SteveD

    Dustin,
    Have you contacted Cheif Bedford personally – he is very approachable and this seems like a misunderstanding, or a make-believe story.
    Steve in Coralville

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_QN3ECSWYNLWL63N6QSCYS2SGXU SteveD

    Dustin, this seems a bit fishy. Have you ever spoken to Chief Bedford? He is very reasonable – this seems like a misunderstanding or a make-believe story.

    • Dustin Krutsinger

      Steve, I have not yet spoken to Chief Bedford, I have an email out to him and the city council, but have yet to hear back as of this time.  I have heard nothing but nice things about Chief Bedford and I’m sure he will respond soon.  I hope it is a missunderstanding, but I can assure you it is not make believe.

    • Dustin Krutsinger

      Steve, I have not yet spoken to Chief Bedford, I have an email out to him and the city council, but have yet to hear back as of this time.  I have heard nothing but nice things about Chief Bedford and I’m sure he will respond soon.  I hope it is a missunderstanding, but I can assure you it is not make believe.

      • HeywoodJablome

        Child exploitation is also a crime.

        • Lish

          This is not a case of child exploitation! There may be people who do that but this family is DEFINITELY not one of them.

  • Keir Heath

    Thank God I live in Germany, a country that knows all too well the dangers inherit in a state where the police overstep their mandate to trample on the well-being and livelihood of the common man. The state looks after its people whilst allowing them to live as they see fit without undue interference. The US seems more and more to be following a fascist route; as its influence diminishes around the world, it seeks to enforce its dominance upon its own people. There doesn’t appear to be any hope given the general decline in its education system and completely ignorant, unqualified people who run for office and are given headlines due to notoriety rather than experience and ability. What a dystopia the US has become, and we in Europe, grateful for the US of three generations ago, can only shake our heads and bemoan the loss of a former model and friend.
    http://www.tracesofevil.com

  • Eric Goranson

    Kudos on making the Chicago Tribune with this story!  http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-ia-lemonadestandbann,0,6683783.story

  • Khansenquilts

    You sound like a wonderful person and just wanted to teach your daughter about hard work, but what about respecting the law. I’m sure there is a reason that they have this law, and mind you it was only for 2 days. At 4 she sells lemonade (cute), at 12 it’s gatorade (well maybe?), 21 it’s beer or t shirts…. where do you draw the line of who can get by with it. There are ones that get their permit to provide for their families, how fair is that to them. I’m sure the police felt bad closing you down, but you need to see their side too. If you want to teach your daughter about hard work, set up your lemonade stand this weekend. I bet the police will even buy some from her then. 

  • Lish

    Let the people be a part of making the laws and this won’t happen!  No one makes those people buy the lemonade and they can ask questions if they have any concerns . We need to stop the excuses! Their is NO good reason to have shut down the stand. She used lemonade mix.Tell the kids they need to have sign saying what is in the lemonade or put the label from the lemonade mix out for people who have concerns to check.Let the people decided if they trust what’s in the lemonade or not.  A common sense solution to the “health risk” side of it.The police need to spend more time protecting us from the REAL criminals. There should be no permit needed for selling lemonade. That is COMPLETELY absurd! This family is a law abiding family. It’s not even about health risks. It was all about the money they want to make off people at the vendors tents. This family wasn’t putting their daughter up to making them a profit either as some commented in the Omaha Herald. They were trying to teach her something that seems to be going by the wayside which is hard work should be what provides for your needs. Not living off of those who do!

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_DWGOKMNQPIJWV2TBZ3XJSSSSYI bmovies60

    “In all fairness, the officer was very nice and apologetic and said, “I really don’t want to do this, but my chief sent me over to shut you down.””

    What will it take to get that Chief fired and the person who gave those orders to him?

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