To tell you the truth it surprised me too, but I'm from the east coast, which tends to be a bit more straight laced.....Public drunkenness (though having an open container is) isn't a crime here either. If you are dead drunk and wandering down the street, if you aren't explicitly breaking any laws or being an active danger to yourself, you cannot be picked up. Again, the police can ask you if you want a ride home or if you need to go to a hospital, but if you refuse they have to leave you alone....
What that says to me is that some law maker sometime recognized that a bicycle is not an inherently dangerous machine to the general public. They can take it away (its just impounded - no fines or fees to get it back) if you are going to hurt yourself, but you aren't a menace to society the way a drunk driver is.
Your pic above is a great example of why I often don't like bicycle lanes.... the whole painted mess on the road is so confusing for everyone.... but if I understand correctly, yes if the cyclists were continuing straight and your husband was going right, he can certainly pass them in the turning lane.