Open container tax?

Hometown » Texas

Posted: 3/20/2006 9:20:39 AM EDT

I know there is a tax

if you want to keep an open container of beer in your car or truck but what constitutes an “open container”? I know if I have a beer on the dash I cup holder I will have to pay the tax. How about an empty under the seat or in a trash sack inside the cab? How about rolling around loose in the bed? Just wondering when and where an open container becomes just another piece of garbage.

Thanks.

Posted: 3/20/2006 9:22:58 AM EDT

[#1]

we had cop tell us to hold it out the window...

Posted: 3/20/2006 9:34:40 AM EDT

[#2]

"A useable amount" of alcohol, constitutes an open container.

Empty cans are not a problem.

Old cups, not a problem.

But, if you have a bottle of Malibu rum, with the seal broken, a shot glass with fresh rum droplets, an open can of Miller Lite, alcohol on your breath and you JUST smashed in to the side of another vehicle...

Do NOT try to hide the rum under your recently demolished Volvo. It does not amuse the Trooper on scene.

A young lady found that out a few weeks ago.

TRG

Posted: 3/21/2006 7:17:08 PM EDT

[#3]

a person in possession of

an open container of alcohol - opened, seal broken, uncorked and then corked, cap replaced/screwed on. If it has been opened, it counts.

in the passenger area of vehicle - not behind the last row of seats or in a locked glove box or trunk

on a public roadway, including the right of way

without regard for whether the vehicle is being operated/stopped/parked (or even can operate, i.e., up on blocks)

excepting vehicles for hire, like limo, taxi, etc. and living quarters of camper or RV

one of 2 offenses in TX for which you cannot be arrested, provided you sign the citation

Posted: 3/21/2006 7:47:07 PM EDT

[#4]

Quoted:
a person in possession of

an open container of alcohol - opened, seal broken, uncorked and then corked, cap replaced/screwed on. If it has been opened, it counts.

in the passenger area of vehicle - not behind the last row of seats or in a locked glove box or trunk

on a public roadway, including the right of way

without regard for whether the vehicle is being operated/stopped/parked (or even can operate, i.e., up on blocks)

excepting vehicles for hire, like limo, taxi, etc. and living quarters of camper or RV

one of 2 offenses in TX for which you cannot be arrested, provided you sign the citation

seatbelt is the other right

Posted: 3/21/2006 7:54:15 PM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:
Quoted:
a person in possession of

an open container of alcohol - opened, seal broken, uncorked and then corked, cap replaced/screwed on. If it has been opened, it counts.

in the passenger area of vehicle - not behind the last row of seats or in a locked glove box or trunk

on a public roadway, including the right of way

without regard for whether the vehicle is being operated/stopped/parked (or even can operate, i.e., up on blocks)

excepting vehicles for hire, like limo, taxi, etc. and living quarters of camper or RV

one of 2 offenses in TX for which you cannot be arrested, provided you sign the citation

seatbelt is the other right

Nope, speeding.

Posted: 3/21/2006 8:06:18 PM EDT

[#6]

Quoted:
one of 2 offenses in TX for which you cannot be arrested, provided you sign the citation

seatbelt is the other right

Seatbelts are a good arrest (at least legally) and a case of a seatbelt arrest went all the way to the USSC and was decided in December 2001, Atwater v Lago Vista(TX). In that case a woman was arrested for not wearing her seatbelt and it was contested up to the Supreme Court as being an unreasonable Seizure per the 4th Amendment. The USSC basically said, that is the law in Texas, so be it. As is the case in most of these decisions, it was split 5-4. The main gist of the argument was that in Texas, a traffic citation cannot carry a jail sentence and only a fine (unless you can't pay the fine). The court rejected that argument.

Posted: 3/22/2006 4:02:34 AM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
a person in possession of

an open container of alcohol - opened, seal broken, uncorked and then corked, cap replaced/screwed on. If it has been opened, it counts.

in the passenger area of vehicle - not behind the last row of seats or in a locked glove box or trunk

on a public roadway, including the right of way

without regard for whether the vehicle is being operated/stopped/parked (or even can operate, i.e., up on blocks)

excepting vehicles for hire, like limo, taxi, etc. and living quarters of camper or RV

one of 2 offenses in TX for which you cannot be arrested, provided you sign the citation

thanks for posting the info.
do you have a source for the information? statue that can pin it down?

Posted: 3/22/2006 5:18:42 AM EDT

[#8]

Now that everyone has chimed in with their opinion , here are the facts

(read it carefully and you will see the loophole big enough to hide a six pack in):

§ 49.031. POSSESSION OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE IN MOTOR
VEHICLE. (a) In this section:
(1) "Open container" means a bottle, can, or other
receptacle that contains any amount of alcoholic beverage and that
is open, that has been opened, that has a broken seal, or the
contents of which are partially removed.
(2) "Passenger area of a motor vehicle" means the area
of a motor vehicle designed for the seating of the operator and
passengers of the vehicle. The term does not include:
(A) a glove compartment or similar storage
container that is locked;
(B) the trunk of a vehicle; or
(C) the area behind the last upright seat of the
vehicle, if the vehicle does not have a trunk.
(3) "Public highway" means the entire width between
and immediately adjacent to the boundary lines of any public road,
street, highway, interstate, or other publicly maintained way if
any part is open for public use for the purpose of motor vehicle
travel. The term includes the right-of-way of a public highway.
(b) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly
possesses an open container in a passenger area of a motor vehicle
that is located on a public highway, regardless of whether the
vehicle is being operated or is stopped or parked. Possession by a
person of one or more open containers in a single criminal episode
is a single offense.
(c) It is an exception to the application of Subsection (b)
that at the time of the offense the defendant was a passenger in:
(1) the passenger area of a motor vehicle designed,
maintained, or used primarily for the transportation of persons for
compensation, including a bus, taxicab, or limousine; or
(2) the living quarters of a motorized house coach or
motorized house trailer, including a self-contained camper, a motor
home, or a recreational vehicle.
(d) An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor.
(e) A peace officer charging a person with an offense under
this section, instead of taking the person before a magistrate,
shall issue to the person a written citation and notice to appear
that contains the time and place the person must appear before a
magistrate, the name and address of the person charged, and the
offense charged. If the person makes a written promise to appear
before the magistrate by signing in duplicate the citation and
notice to appear issued by the officer, the officer shall release
the person

Posted: 3/22/2006 5:43:28 AM EDT

[#9]

Wouldn't it be easier just to clean out the truck? It'd cut down on the stench too.

Posted: 3/22/2006 10:54:12 AM EDT

[#10]

The loophole is the fact that you can ride behind the last row of seats(cargo area) in, lets say an SUV, and drink all you want. Weird.

Posted: 3/22/2006 11:43:18 AM EDT

[#11]

The loophole is the fact that you can ride behind the last row of seats(cargo area) in, lets say an SUV, and drink all you want.

Yup. You can also drive around with a keg in the bed of a truck and people sitting back there drinking from it. Ask me how I know... he
Of course, keep in mind any open container is considered probable cause for a DUI check.

Posted: 3/22/2006 12:36:01 PM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:
The loophole is the fact that you can ride behind the last row of seats(cargo area) in, lets say an SUV, and drink all you want. Weird.

Nope, try again.

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