[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Open container laws (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 12/9/2012 7:16:49 PM EDT
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First off I am against driving drunk. However I see nothing wrong drinking a single (not a couple etc ONE) beer on a drive home from working out on the farm. This however is illegal based on open container laws. However reading the law it says that the open container does not count if it is in a locked compartment such as a glovebox, trunk, or behind the seat of a vehicle with no trunk.
So does this mean one could drink one of those pint sized beers with the screw top lid and if pulled over just cap it and throw it in the glove box and lock it or drop it behind the seat of a single cab pickup? Throwing it in the glovebox might be tricky but behind the seat would be so easy. Of course it would be obvious with an ice cold half empty beer behind the seat and beer on your breath but per the letter of the law this seems ok? Just curious mainly. |
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First off I am against driving drunk. However I see nothing wrong drinking a single (not a couple etc ONE) beer on a drive home from working out on the farm. This however is illegal based on open container laws. However reading the law it says that the open container does not count if it is in a locked compartment such as a glovebox, trunk, or behind the seat of a vehicle with no trunk. So does this mean one could drink one of those pint sized beers with the screw top lid and if pulled over just cap it and throw it in the glove box and lock it or drop it behind the seat of a single cab pickup? Throwing it in the glovebox might be tricky but behind the seat would be so easy. Of course it would be obvious with an ice cold half empty beer behind the seat and beer on your breath but per the letter of the law this seems ok? Just curious mainly. I agree, but how is behind the seat a "locked compartment"? |
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Quoted: Of course it would be obvious with an ice cold half empty beer behind the seat and beer on your breath but per the letter of the law this seems ok? Just curious mainly. If you drink a few shots of whiskey at the ranch then drive to the dance hall, you need a place to put your bottle without risking a fine. If in your truck, you put it behind the seat. The law wasn't written to make legal pulling out the whiskey bottle and taking a swig while driving then putting it back behind the seat. |
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If you drink a few shots of whiskey at the ranch then drive to the dance hall, you need a place to put your bottle without risking a fine. If in your truck, you put it behind the seat. The law wasn't written to make legal pulling out the whiskey bottle and taking a swig while driving then putting it back behind the seat. I totally get the intent of the law. I am just wondering if you met the criteria of it but it was pretty obvious you were not just storing the alcohol in there for transport if they could do anything about it. |
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Laws vary by State
http://blog.caranddriver.com/swishing-lanes-the-current-state-of-open-container-laws/ Drunk driving is universally disdained, but, curiously, drinking while driving is not illegal in all states. The current federal transportation funding bill, known by the acronym SAFETEA-LU, specifies guidelines for open-container laws that prohibit “possession or consumption of any open alcoholic beverage in the passenger area of a motor vehicle located on a public highway or right-of-way.” yada yada yada... don't do it |
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First off I am against driving drunk. However I see nothing wrong drinking a single (not a couple etc ONE) beer on a drive home from working out on the farm. This however is illegal based on open container laws. However reading the law it says that the open container does not count if it is in a locked compartment such as a glovebox, trunk, or behind the seat of a vehicle with no trunk. So does this mean one could drink one of those pint sized beers with the screw top lid and if pulled over just cap it and throw it in the glove box and lock it or drop it behind the seat of a single cab pickup? Throwing it in the glovebox might be tricky but behind the seat would be so easy. Of course it would be obvious with an ice cold half empty beer behind the seat and beer on your breath but per the letter of the law this seems ok? Just curious mainly. You're in TN right? I know someone who didn't get charged under state law on that basis, but the passenger it belonged to got popped with a municipal violation. |
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Why does everyone who drives drunk start their post by saying they don't drive drunk? Because I don't drive drunk? Seriously I just enjoy a cold one after a hard days work. Very relaxing sipping a cold one on a 15 minute drive home on the back roads. I am against drunk driving I have bad friends hurt badly and it is just irresponsible to get all jacked up and get behind the wheel. |
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Why does everyone who drives drunk start their post by saying they don't drive drunk? Because I don't drive drunk? Seriously I just enjoy a cold one after a hard days work. Very relaxing sipping a cold one on a 15 minute drive home on the back roads. I am against drunk driving I have bad friends hurt badly and it is just irresponsible to get all jacked up and get behind the wheel. Interesrting. |
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When I first moved to TX back in 2001 the ban on open containers was still fresh. My aunt who lived down here for 20 years was still driving around with a beer in her cup holder for several months out of habit. It was a very foreign idea to me, coming from NY.
Used to be, you could be drinking a beer driving down the road in Texas. I think Louisiana too. In the 70's I rolled up on a road block with a beer between my legs and the officer didn't say a thing. |
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Why does everyone who drives drunk start their post by saying they don't drive drunk? Because I don't drive drunk? Seriously I just enjoy a cold one after a hard days work. Very relaxing sipping a cold one on a 15 minute drive home on the back roads. I am against drunk driving I have bad friends hurt badly and it is just irresponsible to get all jacked up and get behind the wheel. Yo dawg I heard you didn't like drunk driving so here is a beer for you to drink while your driving.  Either my sarcasm meter is broken or your retarded.
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Damn dude, you get drunk off of one beer? You must be a blast at parties.
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Why does everyone who drives drunk start their post by saying they don't drive drunk? Because I don't drive drunk? Seriously I just enjoy a cold one after a hard days work. Very relaxing sipping a cold one on a 15 minute drive home on the back roads. I am against drunk driving I have bad friends hurt badly and it is just irresponsible to get all jacked up and get behind the wheel. Yo dawg I heard you didn't like drunk driving so here is a beer for you to drink while your driving. Either my sarcasm meter is broken or your retarded. |
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First off I am against driving drunk. However I see nothing wrong drinking a single (not a couple etc ONE) beer on a drive home from working out on the farm. This however is illegal based on open container laws. However reading the law it says that the open container does not count if it is in a locked compartment such as a glovebox, trunk, or behind the seat of a vehicle with no trunk. Are you the driver? If so then no booze on the drive home. Period. Actually the same for the passenger because who's to say the driver didn't just hand his beer over to the passenger to avoid a valid ticket? If you're just carting the beer home to drink after you're done driving then putting it in the trunk should be OK. The reason for this is that most laws are not about "drunk driving" but "driving under the influence" which means, even if you're not finished with your beer you're still under the influence. |
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Damn dude, you get drunk off of one beer? You must be a blast at parties.
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Why does everyone who drives drunk start their post by saying they don't drive drunk? Because I don't drive drunk? Seriously I just enjoy a cold one after a hard days work. Very relaxing sipping a cold one on a 15 minute drive home on the back roads. I am against drunk driving I have bad friends hurt badly and it is just irresponsible to get all jacked up and get behind the wheel. Yo dawg I heard you didn't like drunk driving so here is a beer for you to drink while your driving. Either my sarcasm meter is broken or your retarded.I love hearing the arguments from Alkies to justify why they need to drink and drive. |
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I have no desire to drink and drive. Drinking a good beer is a relaxing activity, something that, to me, doesn't go well with driving in DFW. But hey, if you can't have a single beer without getting sloshed, nobody here is going to judge you. Seriously, nobody will call your manhood into question.
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Damn dude, you get drunk off of one beer? You must be a blast at parties.
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Why does everyone who drives drunk start their post by saying they don't drive drunk? Because I don't drive drunk? Seriously I just enjoy a cold one after a hard days work. Very relaxing sipping a cold one on a 15 minute drive home on the back roads. I am against drunk driving I have bad friends hurt badly and it is just irresponsible to get all jacked up and get behind the wheel. Yo dawg I heard you didn't like drunk driving so here is a beer for you to drink while your driving. Either my sarcasm meter is broken or your retarded.I love hearing the arguments from Alkies to justify why they need to drink and drive. |
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Why does everyone who drives drunk start their post by saying they don't drive drunk? Because I don't drive drunk? Seriously I just enjoy a cold one after a hard days work. Very relaxing sipping a cold one on a 15 minute drive home on the back roads. I am against drunk driving I have bad friends hurt badly and it is just irresponsible to get all jacked up and get behind the wheel. I'd agree with you but I don't want to argue with all the people brainwashed by MADD and the teetotalers. 
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There has been quite a bit of testing done, and it has been conclusively proven that driving skills and reaction times degrade with just ONE 12 oz 3.2 beer, so driving after drinking one is legal, its stupid and can kill someone. People who have been drinking are incredibly poor judges of their ability to drive, so pretty soon the thought is, "well, if one didn't hurt my driving, neither will two! And we are off, then its three, and on and on. Back when I was a Deputy I did a little informal research, based on interviews I did on IMPAIRED drivers, two 3.2 beers will bring most people to a BAC that will get you charged with driving while impaired. Its really very simple...NEVER DRINK AND DRIVE! Simple as that. In 1968 I was hit head on by a driver who had been drinking, he was driving down the wrong side of the road, not a little bit, his entire car was in my lane, at that time his BAC wasn't high enough to draw an alcohol charge, just driving left of center, by today's standards, he still wouldn't be DUI, but he could draw a driving while impaired charge. |
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How about drinking some other cold drink on the way home and saving the booze for sitting out on the porch. Still it's a question of logic. I can pound a beer and hop in the car 100% legal. Sip that beer on the drive home and it's illegal. You would think BAC would just be BAC no matter where it's obtained. |
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Why does everyone who drives drunk start their post by saying they don't drive drunk? Because I don't drive drunk? Seriously I just enjoy a cold one after a hard days work. Very relaxing sipping a cold one on a 15 minute drive home on the back roads. I am against drunk driving I have bad friends hurt badly and it is just irresponsible to get all jacked up and get behind the wheel. Yo dawg I heard you didn't like drunk driving so here is a beer for you to drink while your driving. Either my sarcasm meter is broken or your retarded.Is he? |
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How about drinking some other cold drink on the way home and saving the booze for sitting out on the porch. Still it's a question of logic. I can pound a beer and hop in the car 100% legal. Sip that beer on the drive home and it's illegal. You would thing BAC would just be BAC no matter where it's obtained. The best logic is to wait til you're not behind the wheel. |
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How about drinking some other cold drink on the way home and saving the booze for sitting out on the porch. Still it's a question of logic. I can pound a beer and hop in the car 100% legal. Sip that beer on the drive home and it's illegal. You would thing BAC would just be BAC no matter where it's obtained. The best logic is to wait til you're not behind the wheel. That's not an answer or explanation. It's an opinion in the form of a statement. FWIW I could not tell you the last drink I had so I'm not championing this cause. I just hate logical fallacies. Especially when they are codified into law by activist groups. |
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There has been quite a bit of testing done, and it has been conclusively proven that driving skills and reaction times degrade with just ONE 12 oz 3.2 beer, so driving after drinking one is legal, its stupid and can kill someone. People who have been drinking are incredibly poor judges of their ability to drive, so pretty soon the thought is, "well, if one didn't hurt my driving, neither will two! And we are off, then its three, and on and on. Back when I was a Deputy I did a little informal research, based on interviews I did on IMPAIRED drivers, two 3.2 beers will bring most people to a BAC that will get you charged with driving while impaired. Its really very simple...NEVER DRINK AND DRIVE! Simple as that. In 1968 I was hit head on by a driver who had been drinking, he was driving down the wrong side of the road, not a little bit, his entire car was in my lane, at that time his BAC wasn't high enough to draw an alcohol charge, just driving left of center, by today's standards, he still wouldn't be DUI, but he could draw a driving while impaired charge. this everyone that drinks and drives seems to think that the impairment magically starts at .08 BAC. In reality, in study after study it has been proven, that impairment starts with the first drink. me personally if I wrote the laws, the limit would be .01, and the charge for DUI would be attempted murder. |
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That's not an answer or explanation. It's an opinion in the form of a statement. FWIW I could not tell you the last drink I had so I'm not championing this cause. I just hate logical fallacies. Especially when they are codified into law by activist groups. The answer is that the best policy is to leave the intoxicating beverages til you get home. I don't see how thats a logical falacy. Keep something else in the cooler for the ride home. |
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How about drinking some other cold drink on the way home and saving the booze for sitting out on the porch. Still it's a question of logic. I can pound a beer and hop in the car 100% legal. Sip that beer on the drive home and it's illegal. You would think BAC would just be BAC no matter where it's obtained. Amen. |
I don't drive drunk. I drive buzzed!  
Everyone reacts to alcohol differently and at different speeds. One beer for me, and I can't even feel a thing, other than a lot of burping. I admit, I've bought many a 12-pack at the store and cracked one open in the parking lot for the drive home or to a friends on the back roads. Not gonna hurt a thing... OP, you know the laws, and you know what your body is capable of. The choice is yours. |
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That's not an answer or explanation. It's an opinion in the form of a statement. FWIW I could not tell you the last drink I had so I'm not championing this cause. I just hate logical fallacies. Especially when they are codified into law by activist groups. The answer is that the best policy is to leave the intoxicating beverages til you get home. I don't see how thats a logical falacy. Keep something else in the cooler for the ride home. The fallacy is that the law is worried about where I obtained a 0.05 BAC. Why would it matter if it was at the bar I just left or on the drive home from work? Again I have no desire to drink and drive legally or otherwise. It's just illogical and bothers me that this is an issue. |
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How about drinking some other cold drink on the way home and saving the booze for sitting out on the porch. Because in a free country we shouldn't have to. A person drinking a beer while driving is no more a danger to the public than someone drinking a soda. The only reason it is illegal is because it might make the courts job harder on rare occasions. |
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Always interesting to see people's opinions, generally by their locations.
I can hit a few dirt roads, and not see a single soul, on a 10 mile drive. Or, I can drive an hour, and be in a completely urban city. Everyone thinks people are going to be doing shots on I-95, when in reality, it's more like, grabbing a beer while driving down a road that doesn't have a name. Shit, I don't even know if it's a road. The city grades it though
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Always interesting to see people's opinions, generally by their locations. I can hit a few dirt roads, and not see a single soul, on a 10 mile drive. Or, I can drive an hour, and be in a completely urban city. Everyone thinks people are going to be doing shots on I-95, when in reality, it's more like, grabbing a beer while driving down a road that doesn't have a name. Shit, I don't even know if it's a road. The city grades it though Lots of roads like that around here. No name, just a long county number. Parts of it paved, some of it gravel and back to pavement again. I have to go to Chicago tomorrow morning for work. It will be a five hour drive and it honestly crushes part of my soul being in a city like that even if just overnight. I'll take my nameless back roads and gas stations run by Americans please. |
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Quoted: Quoted: How about drinking some other cold drink on the way home and saving the booze for sitting out on the porch. Because in a free country we shouldn't have to. A person drinking a beer while driving is no more a danger to the public than someone drinking a soda. The only reason it is illegal is because it might make the courts job harder on rare occasions. Drink a beer while driving all you want on private property. If it's not legal somewhere, I fully support your bid to make it legal. Public roads? Lolno.
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There has been quite a bit of testing done, and it has been conclusively proven that driving skills and reaction times degrade with just ONE 12 oz 3.2 beer, so driving after drinking one is legal, its stupid and can kill someone. People who have been drinking are incredibly poor judges of their ability to drive, so pretty soon the thought is, "well, if one didn't hurt my driving, neither will two! And we are off, then its three, and on and on. Back when I was a Deputy I did a little informal research, based on interviews I did on IMPAIRED drivers, two 3.2 beers will bring most people to a BAC that will get you charged with driving while impaired. Its really very simple...NEVER DRINK AND DRIVE! Simple as that. In 1968 I was hit head on by a driver who had been drinking, he was driving down the wrong side of the road, not a little bit, his entire car was in my lane, at that time his BAC wasn't high enough to draw an alcohol charge, just driving left of center, by today's standards, he still wouldn't be DUI, but he could draw a driving while impaired charge. Let's make the law so that if you have a drop of alcohol in your system when you're operating a vehicle you go to jail for a year then. At least it will be clear. |
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Always interesting to see people's opinions, generally by their locations. I can hit a few dirt roads, and not see a single soul, on a 10 mile drive. Or, I can drive an hour, and be in a completely urban city. Everyone thinks people are going to be doing shots on I-95, when in reality, it's more like, grabbing a beer while driving down a road that doesn't have a name. Shit, I don't even know if it's a road. The city grades it though Lots of roads like that around here. No name, just a long county number. Parts of it paved, some of it gravel and back to pavement again. I have to go to Chicago tomorrow morning for work. It will be a five hour drive and it honestly crushes part of my soul being in a city like that even if just overnight. I'll take my nameless back roads and gas stations run by Americans please. If someone came here a year ago and can't speak more than 50 words in english but they're a legal citizen, they're an american, so I'm suprised you'd make such a comment after saying you don't like logical fallicies or whatever they're called. 
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There has been quite a bit of testing done, and it has been conclusively proven that driving skills and reaction times degrade with just ONE 12 oz 3.2 beer, so driving after drinking one is legal, its stupid and can kill someone. People who have been drinking are incredibly poor judges of their ability to drive, so pretty soon the thought is, "well, if one didn't hurt my driving, neither will two! And we are off, then its three, and on and on. Back when I was a Deputy I did a little informal research, based on interviews I did on IMPAIRED drivers, two 3.2 beers will bring most people to a BAC that will get you charged with driving while impaired. Its really very simple...NEVER DRINK AND DRIVE! Simple as that. In 1968 I was hit head on by a driver who had been drinking, he was driving down the wrong side of the road, not a little bit, his entire car was in my lane, at that time his BAC wasn't high enough to draw an alcohol charge, just driving left of center, by today's standards, he still wouldn't be DUI, but he could draw a driving while impaired charge. this everyone that drinks and drives seems to think that the impairment magically starts at .08 BAC. In reality, in study after study it has been proven, that impairment starts with the first drink. me personally if I wrote the laws, the limit would be .01, and the charge for DUI would be attempted murder. And the counter argument to that is "no blood, no foul"... |