Alcohol and the Law
It is illegal to:
- Drink while driving or to have any open alcoholic beverage in the car (or off-highway vehicle) or to drive while under the influence of alcoholic beverages.
- Be drunk or under the influence of drugs in public or on a public highway and be in a condition that poses a threat to oneself or others.
- Possess a drink liquor (or sell or give it to anyone else) at any public school or on school grounds.
- Allow anyone under 21 to hang around a location where liquor is sold (except for a restaurant).
- Have any open alcoholic beverage in any city- or county- owned park or certain other public places without a special license or unless you are recycling the container. (For this law to be in effect, the city or county must have its own local rule - also called an ordinance - prohibiting opened alcoholic beverages in specific areas.)
And if you are under 21, you cannot:
- Possess liquor on any roadway or in any public place; carry liquor in a car; or be a passenger in a car carrying liquor unless you're accompanied by a parent, responsible adult relative or any other adult designated by the parent or legal guardian - even if the container is sealed.
- Enter and remain in a bar without lawful business.
- Be hired to work in any establishment whose main business is selling alcoholic beverages for use on the premises. If you are under 18, you cannot work anywhere in which alcoholic beverages are purchased for take-out (a liquor or convenience store, for example) unless you are under the continuous supervision of someone who is at least 21.