Curious about drinking alcohol

[wandering mike]

@ Grandma: The laws were written for the most part without consideration of our lifestyles.  But if in some states it is possible to get busted for DUI by being asleep in your own car in your own driveway, then I would say the same could technically apply to a van or motor home not on your property.  Now a trailer would be a different story, but then again, people have been DUI on bicycles and other alternate vehicles.  For me, a campground or RV Park is OK unless posted like some public parks are.

 

[LucidPhotographer]

Well, I did some poking around online about this. Things seem to vary quite a bit state to state and of course officer to officer. For a DUI, in some states, you can be anywhere in a parked car and still get a DUI. It doesnt even matter where the key is. Take this with a grain of salt but I read that one lady drove home after drinking, her kids ratted her out and the cops came to her home, felt the hood of her car and found it warm, then went into her house and arrested her. Another one (this was on a supposed lawyers website) said that a man was parked at a campsite, sleeping in the back of his truck that had a camper shell and was awakened by a cop then arrested for DUI. As for motorhomes, it could get tricky. If you are not set up like you are going to camp (awning out, chairs set up outside) and you are the one deemed in control of the vehicle, you could possibly get a DUI.<br /><br />As for open container, I read that most states allow opened bottles of alcohol in only the trunk or if there is the lack of a trunk, the bottle must not be easily accessed from the driving area. So I guess if you have it in the back of your motorhome or van it MAY be ok.<br /><br />

 

[Ballenxj]

This is an interesting subject. I was told by a cop that if you have been drinking while out and about and have the keys in your pocket, you are in control of the vehicle, therefore D.U.I. This was in reference to sleeping it off by the side of the road because you didn't want to drive after drinking. OK, so what about drinking while in a house? Don't you still have your car keys in your pocket? Aren't you "still" technically in control of the vehicle? Something doesn't quite add up here. <img rel="lightbox" src="/images/boards/smilies/rolleyes.gif" class="bbc_img" /><br />-Bruce

 

[Grandma]

I don't think I will take any chances of having alcohol in a vehicle at all. It wouldn't be worth it.<br /><br />I did make some homemade Kahlua last week and it's suppose to sit for a month.&nbsp; We had our first snow of the season today. Thought it would be a good time to try it. It was good.&nbsp; But it was done inside a house.&nbsp; Altho a small house and our van sits outside covered with ice and snow. <img rel="lightbox" src="/images/boards/smilies/frown.gif" class="bbc_img" />

 

[VanTrekker]

The laws vary a lot.&nbsp; In Iowa if you are drunk and have your keys in the igntion (even if it is turned off), it is DUI.&nbsp; If they can't get you with that, they'll try public intox or open container.<br /><br />In the boonies, being tipsy varies a lot depending on where or when you're drinking.&nbsp; Beer is generally allowed in the county campgrounds but usually not hard liquor.&nbsp; I prefer hard liquor (the little one shot bottles)...&nbsp; I just down one or two and dispose of them quickly.&nbsp; You can carry it unopened though.&nbsp; I talked to a county guy about that and he said geez but laughed and said just don't get caught with the empty.&nbsp; He advised the best policy is discretion and not getting drunk...<br /><br />But most definitely, in Iowa, don't put the keys in the ignition under any circumstances if you might be close to .08.&nbsp; It's also DUI if u are drunk on a boat, lawnmower, bicycle, etc.<br /><br />Contrast that with 1985 when I used to sit in the car on the street drinking 'cause Dad wouldn't let me drink the house... They were a lot more liberal back then... <br /><br /><br />V.T.

 

[wandering mike]

In Ohio folks recommend throwing your keys under the car if you are going to sleep it off. &nbsp;<br /><br />But I do think that if you drink the bottle completely, it is no longer an "open" container of alcohol, but an "empty" and "former" container of alcohol. &nbsp;

 

[josephusminimus]

So is the open container a separate issue from the blood alcohol?&nbsp; Or are they two distinct parts of the same issue?<br /><br />If there's something that can be construed as an open container, but no blood alcohol, is it sufficient to remove any DUI from the equation?<br /><br />I assume police carry those breath testers with them nowadays so a person can be tested on the spot.&nbsp; Is that correct?&nbsp; Could a person who hasn't touched alcohol&nbsp;insist on being tested to prove it, then just leave the whole matter behind?<br /><br />

 

[Lifemagician]

... They were a lot more liberal back then...

<br /><br />I venture to say that the list of folk killed in those days, because of drivers under the influence, was longer as well.... relatively speaking.<br /><br />

I assume police carry those breath testers with them nowadays so a person can be tested on the spot.&nbsp; Is that correct?&nbsp;

<br /><br />That is the way it is here.&nbsp;&nbsp; When you are pulled over for whatever reason, you are breathtested.&nbsp; If under the legal limit, then no matter how many full, open or empty containers in the vehicle, you cannot be charged.&nbsp; You can only get a DUI if your blood alcohol level is over the legal limit.<br /><br />No idea why you would be charged just because your keys are in your pocket.&nbsp; Here it is quite common for drunks to sleep in their vehicle in the hotel carpark.&nbsp; Despite that, some still get caught the next day as they drank so much the alcohol in their blood is still over the legal limit.<br /><br />[Son of mine discovered at his peril.&nbsp;&nbsp; Won't get his licence back until next April..... after 12months suspension.&nbsp; Best thing is, he is alive and has not hurt anyone.&nbsp; When he gets his licence back I am sure it will never happen again.&nbsp; He has hated not being able to drive.]<br /><br />Lifey

 

[josephusminimus]

That makes lot of sense to me.&nbsp; Thanks Lifey.

 

[wandering mike]

<p>Open container is separate and distinct from DUI or other laws. &nbsp;Here is <a href="http://www.com.ohio.gov/liqr/OpenContainerLaw.aspx" rel="nofollow">the Ohio law.</a>&nbsp; It also addresses storage in a trunk, or in a car with no trunk, the storage must be behind the farthest back upright seat. &nbsp;In Ohio the law comes under liquor laws, not traffic laws, but a cop can still cite you. &nbsp;You don't even have to be a drinker. &nbsp;If a passenger left the open container in your car, you are in possession when he left.<br /><br />Interestingly the law also states<span style="color: #000000;"> it is illegal in Ohio to have possession of an open container: &nbsp;"...<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 16.883333206176758px;">while being in or on a stationary motor vehicle on any street, highway, or other public or private property open to the public for purposes of vehicular travel or parking." &nbsp;Sounds like a campground road or parking spot might technically be illegal.</span></span></p><p>Life has changed. &nbsp;I remember back in the 90's in Louisiana cruising down the highway with a Federal Prosecutor and stopping at a drive through&nbsp;daiquiri store and continuing on down the highway.&nbsp;</p>

 

[josephusminimus]

Mike: So much has changed the place is barely recognizable.&nbsp; Good knowing about the parts of the change a person might find jumped up and bit him without even being aware there was a dog around.<br /><br />Thanks for the distinction between blood alcohol and DUI and the open container vulnerability bearing no relationship to alcohol consumption or the lack of it.

 

[Van Tripper]

Don't know where you all are but in Fla. and Tn., the 2 states I have lived in, open container in any form, in a vehicle, is a violation. &nbsp;Some folks seem to think of DUI and open container as related violations, not. &nbsp;You can be stone cold sober and still be charged with open container, if the seal on a can or bottle of a alcoholic beverage is broken then the container is open, sounds like some of you have had encounters with some nice officers that let things slide. &nbsp;Attitude matters, when dealing with law enforcement.

 

[nixsee]

Sorry to revive an ancient thread, but I'm new to van dwelling and was thinking about alcohol possession/consumption. It sounds like it is a difficult situation and probably best avoided, but what if you were to install some sort of breathalyzer device in the car? I have no idea how that works, what it would cost, etc... but if you had been drinking, there is no way you would be able to drive, thus no problem from police? Thoughts?

 

[idn88]

http://www.flexyourrights.org/faqs/when-can-police-search-your-car/

 

[minimotos95]

I would skip a breathalyser system,I think it would make you look like a multiple DUI offender. The one guy I talked to that had to have one said they are expensive too.
I'm sipping on some Irish coffee as I type this. I've been keeping a fifth of whiskey in a lock box, the same one I keep other combustibles in. Currently I also have a gallon of apple wine fermenting right behind my side door, which wouldn't be wise if I was driving around but I'm parked on private property.
If I decide to drink I put my keys some place like my "pantry" and put chocks under my van so it's obvious that I'm not going anywhere. I've never had to deal with LE about drinking except when I camped in groups on big holidays and they were just looking to catch under-age drinkers red handed and a stern "make sure you pick up all your beer bottles and don't leave the fire smouldering."

Something to think about is while most drug dogs aren't trained to sniff out booze some are, and cops won't treat you home nicely if the drug dog says there's something in it. To me travelling with booze it isn't worth the risk, but stationary or semi stationary it is.

 

[907KHAM687]

Sorry to revive an ancient thread, but I'm new to van dwelling and was thinking about alcohol possession/consumption. It sounds like it is a difficult situation and probably best avoided, but what if you were to install some sort of breathalyzer device in the car? I have no idea how that works, what it would cost, etc... but if you had been drinking, there is no way you would be able to drive, thus no problem from police? Thoughts?

No.
If you are drunk parked and sleeping it off and a cop rolls up he is going to assume that the drunk is going to wake up and drive off ten minutes after he leaves. That is what drunk people do. Some story about a breathalyzer isn't going to convince him otherwise. Or a story about how the drunk hid the keys in a bush and can't find them till they sober up. The cop has seen the bodies of victims of drunk drivers. If he takes the drunk in, nobody will die. You might not be the drunk that runs someone down, but if that cop lets 1000 drunks like you off the hook in the course of his career he has a good chance of regretting it for the rest of his life.

 

[Canine]

Where I am if you are caught with an open container in your vehicle, there's a very good chance you're getting cited and arrested for a DUI. You don't need to blow a .08 or greater or need to show an inability to drive to be arrested. A "DUI per se" needs to show an actual BAC of over .08. I believe if you are over the limit, you can be cited for both.

 

[highdesertranger]

I didn't want to reread this whole thread, but I thought that if you have an RV you are allowed to have an open container, just not in reach of the driver. I myself like my beer but I don't drink and drive, I wait till the end of day when all work and driving is done. if I were a city dweller I wouldn't sit in my vehicle and drink at all. highdesertranger

 

[akrvbob]

The courts have consistently held that if it's an RV and all you have to do is turn the key and drive away it's a motor vehicle and subject to all it's laws.

If it's unable to be driven away instantly because of things like an awning, hook-ups or jacks then it's your home and subject to the laws of your home.

Actually seems fairly reasonable.
Bob

 

[highdesertranger]

so you got my curiosity going I looked it up. the laws vary wildly from state to state best to check. believe it or not in several states it's legal for the passengers to drink in a RV when it's underway. in others though open containers anywhere inside is a no no. highdesertranger