For anyone who wants to complain about the wisdom of justices of the peace, we bring news. Down in St. George, a justice court judge has demonstrated his mastery of common sense.

Judge Paul Dame threw out a charge against a St. George man accused under Utah law of "false wearing or use of a military or organization medal or insignia."

The defendant, Josh Bromley, was caught wearing a polo shirt with the words "SGPD Gang Unit" embroidered on it. Bromley, a veteran of the Iraq war, had been given the shirt by his mother, a former St. George police officer, and was wearing it at a home-improvement store when an off-duty police officer spotted him and called for backup.

Bromley testified that the officer confronted him in the store parking lot and demanded the shirt. He complied, removing the shirt and exposing his LDS undergarments rather than risk being arrested.

He was subsequently charged with impersonating a police officer, which was later downgraded to the "false wearing" charge.

Fortunately Judge Dame had more common sense than the police or the prosecutors who brought this ridiculous case. And well he should. After leaving private practice, Dame served as deputy Washington County attorney, then as St. George city prosecutor, then as the Washington city prosecutor and then as the chief deputy Washington County prosecutor. He was appointed to the bench last May.

Had Bromley's shirt been a regulation police uniform, complete with official patches, badges, billy club and handgun -- and if Bromley had been swaggering around, flaunting phony authority -- one could argue that he was impersonating a police officer. But this was a polo shirt, and he was minding his own business.

Under the city's logic, all military surplus stores should be shut down, or at least lose their stocks of old fatigues, boots and uniform jackets. After all, we wouldn't want anyone to think that somebody buying clothes for a camping trip is a soldier.

A visit to any big box store will reveal a variety of shirts with embroidered logos of different companies or organizations. Would the city of St. George suggest that anyone wearing a shirt with Novell's logo is impersonating a software engineer? Of course not. (But we're glad that such a crime is not covered by Utah statutes because one could end up in the pokie in Southern Utah.)

Likewise, many people wear BYU football jerseys, or the logos of favored professional teams, yet nobody would think to accuse them of impersonating athletes. (BYU's football team under former coach Gary Crowton could have been so accused, but Bronco Mendenhall's players are secure.)

There really should be more to support an accusation of impersonation than the mere wearing of an article of clothing. The impersonator should be doing something to give the impression that he is an officer of the law or a member of the military.

Wearing a shirt with a police logo alone is not enough. Judge Dame agreed and ruled that the facts in the case did not support the charge.

Case dismissed.

Perhaps the state Legislature should use one of its many empty boxcar bills to bring a little common sense to the "false wearing" statute.