almost got busted for emptys

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Tinga said:
No, but what I think and what a cop thinks are two different things. If the cop wants to write you a ticket for whatever reason they will find a way. Did you know that there are over 200 reasons you can pull someone over?
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ok, that's not exactly what i was talking about. they cannot write you a ticket for having empty beer bottles, because it's not illegal. at least not in NYS
 
A bottle that has had its label removed and has been rinsed out is NOT an open container.
 
In the name of caution I'd assume that in the Texas code "any amount of an alcoholic beverage" would include trace amounts (and likely similar code elsewhere). I'd assume that a cop with a stick up his a$$ could ticket you for even a rinsed out bottle.

I've been pulled over several times and accused of being a drug runner (after I'd moved to a different state and hadn't re-registered my car yet). Never got any ticket from it, politely refused when asked if they could search my car without a warrant (no, there was nothing illegal in my car, but I'm one of those a$$holes who is adamant on my rights against unreasonable search and seizure). Since I was doing absolutely nothing wrong, and they were just harassing me with absolutely no grounds, had to let me go. Now if I'd had empties openly visible in my car, that's a gray area where I'm sure I would have gotten a ticket.

Point is, even if it won't stick, cop can still be a prick about it. Put em in the trunk, where it's definitely legal.
 
I was driving from my parents' house to my house with a 6.5 gallon carboy, full of beer. Never got pulled over, but I was kinda hoping I would, just to chuckle with the cop about the open container law. I made it home safe, so did the beer. (And it came out awesome).

I highly recommend mobile secondaries. :cross:
 
lextasy23 said:
I was driving from my parents' house to my house with a 6.5 gallon carboy, full of beer. Never got pulled over, but I was kinda hoping I would, just to chuckle with the cop about the open container law. I made it home safe, so did the beer. (And it came out awesome).

I highly recommend mobile secondaries. :cross:
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So you're suggesting that we start aerating our wort by strapping it to the back of a truck while off-roading? :rockin:
 
Teromous said:
On your front lawn, if it's a visible open container. I know you can in your back yard but I don't know if it has to be fenced in or not. A guy I know got a warning from a cop for drinking out of a bottle in his front yard. He just had to pour it into a cup and everything was ok. You can also receive a DUI/DWI if you're on a lawnmower :p
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That's totally lame. Here in Florida, as long as you aren't in the public right of way you are good to go. Hell, you can even openly carry a gun without a permit on your own property, including your front yard. Hopefully nobody exercises both rights simultaneously!

We don't have a public intox law either! :mug: They can give you a DUI on any vehicle though including bikes, scooters, lawnmowers, and even wheelchairs. But again, I think it only applies to public roads.
 
Here in OH (In my town at least) I can't drink on my front lawn.....And all bars are condemned to be grotty little windowless piss holes, just in case someone can see the punters drinking. It's medieval IMO
 
realjd said:
That's totally lame. Here in Florida, as long as you aren't in the public right of way you are good to go. Hell, you can even openly carry a gun without a permit on your own property, including your front yard. Hopefully nobody exercises both rights simultaneously!

We don't have a public intox law either! :mug: They can give you a DUI on any vehicle though including bikes, scooters, lawnmowers, and even wheelchairs. But again, I think it only applies to public roads.
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You can carry a gun openly. You only need a permit when trying to conceal it. It's best to get a concealed carry permit even if you open carry though, because it saves a lot of trouble if you have a baggy shirt or winter coat that slips over the top of your holster on accident.
 
Yeah - open container law.

Pretty stupid law IMO. Drunk asses riding along will just throw their empty containers out onto the road so as to not chance being caught with an open container.

Same with the beach I go to. You can drink there, but people were getting busted with open container laws when they were taking them back off the beach with them (you can drive on this beach), so they just started leaving them there.

Over-engineering leads to idiocy.
 
Misplaced_Canuck said:
Put the da*n bottles in the trunk already. :mug:

M_C
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I would but the lever on my trunk is broken. Fixing it is out of my skill level and out of my budget right now
 
Qhrumphf said:
In the name of caution I'd assume that in the Texas code "any amount of an alcoholic beverage" would include trace amounts (and likely similar code elsewhere). I'd assume that a cop with a stick up his a$$ could ticket you for even a rinsed out bottle.
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In Texas, it is common when someone is caught with a just crackpipe for them to be arrested for Possession of a Controlled Substance (Cocaine), based on the residue in the pipe. So if you are in East Middle of Nowhere, the Local Boss Hogg and Roscoe, could probably arrest you for having a rinsed out bottle, but in Harris County (Houston) the ADA's would hang up on the cop that asked for that charge.
 
jsweet said:
In NYS, you cannot have an open container in the car. In practice, it's unlikely you'd get busted for a 12-pack box full of empties, but consider the following two scenarios:

a) You are drinking a beer while driving. (Naughty!) A cop thinks she saw you doing it. She puts on her lights, you panic and set the half-empty beer in the cupholder, and pull over. She field tests you, but it was your first beer of the day so you test well under the legal limit -- but she writes you a ticket for having an open container, which is illegal in NYS.

b) You are drinking a beer while driving. (Shame on you!) A cop thinks she saw you doing it. She puts on her lights, so you chug the beer, put it inside a 12-pack box in the backseat, and pull over. She field tests you, but it was your first beer of the day so you test well under the legal limit -- but she writes you a ticket for having an open container, which is illegal in NYS.

If the container is empty, it's a judgment call on the part of the cop. In practice you are probably fine with an empty 12-pack, but I would still be nervous if a cop asked me about it.
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Why is your cop a she? Was this a real life example.. Or am i being sexist? :eek:
 
a friend of mine had been out hiking and picked up trash along the trail. several beer cans made their way into his bag of trash and he had it in the floorboard of his car as he came home. he was not drunk, drinking, or under any influence, but was busted for open container.... say what you want about what is legal, but legal has nothing to do with cops. jmho
 
"I was going more from personal experience, and did qualify it futher a few post down. I do understand the police do profile people wether they are suppose to or not. My wifes uncle was moving from texas to michigan, and loaded alot of their belonging in an RV and headed north. He was stopped 8 times on the way north. Something about a middle age man alone in a RV screamed drug runner to the police."

8 cops between Texas and Michigan watch "Breaking Bad".
 
I always keep alcohol in the trunk. A lot of times I will take a few different bottles of alcohol and maybe an occasional 12 pack with a beer missing to friends houses. I just don't want the hassle if I happen to get stopped.

As for the law about drinking in your yard...about a month ago, a bunch of my friends were over and we were all on the pool deck in the back yard. We noticed a lot of police lights driving up and down the street in front of my house, so about 6-7 of us walked out front with pints in hand. One police officer stopped and got out to talk to us (they were looking for some kids that were vandalizing someones property). The officer calmly asked us all to stay in my yard and not step off the curb with our beer in hand because that would be a violation.

In the end, we invited him back when he was off duty, and he has come to two different brew sessions we have had, and the last time even brought two other officers with him who are interested in brewing.

...needless to say, if my alarm at home ever goes off, I expect a pretty quick response time.
 
During my senior year of high school we got to spend our final three weeks of the year shadowing professionals in a field we found interesting or would be something we would like to get into. My best friend worked with a lawyer. At least in Ohio, 15 years ago the spirit of the law went something like this:

If you had an open container in your car (which also meant it had at least some alcoholic beverage residue) you could be busted. Unless it was in a tied or closed "garbage" bag and beyond arm's reach. Meaning, if you had empty beer cans/bottles in a box or lying on the front seat or on the floorboards, etc - you're done. But if you put that same container into a garbage bag and it was in a place that you could not reach while driving, it was enough to show intent that this was just garbage and not something you just consumed. Also being out of arm's reach apparently raised enough reasonable doubt to when it was consumed.

IANAL, and obviously state laws vary, but the simple solution is, as others have mentioned, put it in the trunk. Even if you are right, don't invite hassle.
 
As I think most people here have figured out by now in their life there is a difference between getting a ticket/arrested and being found guilty of a crime. From the police perspective if they pull you over on a stretch of dark road in the local bar scene and notice a few empty bottles rolling around... it is not hard to see where their conclusion comes from.

If you think that is bad, try getting accused of hiding a deadly impact weapon when you open your glove compartment and a 6D Maglite rolls out...
 
Agentaaron said:
. . .The officer calmly asked us all to stay in my yard and not step off the curb with our beer in hand because that would be a violation. . .
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I remember a party I went to in college (PSU) where people were told the same thing. Unfortunately, the cops weren't as cool as yours and just kept driving around the block until one guy took a half a step back from where he was standing and his heel hit the sidewalk. Lights came on, two cops jumped out and hauled his ass downtown. Cops can be real dicks when they want to be. My policy is to try to never give them any excuse.
 
SDCore said:
Why is your cop a she? Was this a real life example.. Or am i being sexist? :eek:
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Heh, I try to deliberately use the female pronoun as the neuter tense, especially in a situation where people tend to picture a man anyway. Just to mix things up a bit.

Despite my efforts, my 2-year-old son still use the male pronoun for everything.
When he spots my wife: "I found him!" hehehe...
 

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