I'm looking for thoughts and views on this.
I read this big of code from our City Ordinances:
(Code 1964, § 4.130)
Open-Container:
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to possess any alcoholic beverage on any street, sidewalk or city parking facility unless such alcoholic beverage is in the original container and the seal is unbroken.
(b) It shall be unlawful for any person to consume any alcoholic beverage on any street, sidewalk or city parking facility.
(c) The definition of "alcoholic beverages" contained in Chapter 4 shall apply to this section.
(d) This section shall not apply to possession or consumption of any alcoholic beverage in a licensed motor vehicle.
(e) The city council may temporarily exclude any street from the provisions of this section in connection with the temporary closing of the street for a special event.
(f) A violation of this section is a class B misdemeanor.
(Ord. No. 14048, § 1, 5-2-94)
and it looks like it makes it illegal for me to take, for instance, a bottle of scotch from my liquor cabinet that has been opened ... across the street to my neighbor's house to share it - even with the cork in, and not being opened during said transportation. It seems it would not matter if I carried it in a locked briefcase, either. I could go to the store and buy another, new bottle of scotch, and take it to his house, and share it. But at that point I must leave the bottle there if we don't finish it. As a matter of fact, it appears that technically I couldn't carry an un-rinsed empty in a trash/recycle bag out to the curb for trash pickup, either.
This seems... well, wrong.
I know this is not why the ordinance exists, and 99% of neighbors in America wouldn't blink about me doing it. However, it appears that I have a disgruntled neighbor who thinks I called the police on her for a noise complaint (which neither I nor the two neighbors she targeted with her call did --- though we have on one occasion asked them to turn their bass-intensive music on their car stereo down) -- but I'm guessing somebody on the block did judging by their recent behavior. Regardless, an America where I can't open a beer and walk across the street to my neighbor's yard and socialize peacefully is out of line, as far as I'm concerned, with "liberty and the persuit of happiness".
It appears, though, that a disgruntled neighbor can use this law to harrass neighbors he or she doesn't like for behavior that the vast majority of citizens in this country would consider normal and peaceful.
What would you do?
I read this big of code from our City Ordinances:
(Code 1964, § 4.130)
Open-Container:
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to possess any alcoholic beverage on any street, sidewalk or city parking facility unless such alcoholic beverage is in the original container and the seal is unbroken.
(b) It shall be unlawful for any person to consume any alcoholic beverage on any street, sidewalk or city parking facility.
(c) The definition of "alcoholic beverages" contained in Chapter 4 shall apply to this section.
(d) This section shall not apply to possession or consumption of any alcoholic beverage in a licensed motor vehicle.
(e) The city council may temporarily exclude any street from the provisions of this section in connection with the temporary closing of the street for a special event.
(f) A violation of this section is a class B misdemeanor.
(Ord. No. 14048, § 1, 5-2-94)
and it looks like it makes it illegal for me to take, for instance, a bottle of scotch from my liquor cabinet that has been opened ... across the street to my neighbor's house to share it - even with the cork in, and not being opened during said transportation. It seems it would not matter if I carried it in a locked briefcase, either. I could go to the store and buy another, new bottle of scotch, and take it to his house, and share it. But at that point I must leave the bottle there if we don't finish it. As a matter of fact, it appears that technically I couldn't carry an un-rinsed empty in a trash/recycle bag out to the curb for trash pickup, either.
This seems... well, wrong.
I know this is not why the ordinance exists, and 99% of neighbors in America wouldn't blink about me doing it. However, it appears that I have a disgruntled neighbor who thinks I called the police on her for a noise complaint (which neither I nor the two neighbors she targeted with her call did --- though we have on one occasion asked them to turn their bass-intensive music on their car stereo down) -- but I'm guessing somebody on the block did judging by their recent behavior. Regardless, an America where I can't open a beer and walk across the street to my neighbor's yard and socialize peacefully is out of line, as far as I'm concerned, with "liberty and the persuit of happiness".
It appears, though, that a disgruntled neighbor can use this law to harrass neighbors he or she doesn't like for behavior that the vast majority of citizens in this country would consider normal and peaceful.
What would you do?
