Is public consumption of alcohol legal in the state of Missouri or any
city therein (assuming the person consuming is of legal drinking age)?
 I.e. Can I buy alcohol and consume it on public property if I am over
21?

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Request for Question Clarification by markj-ga on 05 Sep 2004 06:26 PDT

greencandy --

Keeping in mind that anything we researchers say here should not be
considered to be, and is not intended as, legal advice, I too am
unable to find a Missouri state law dealing with consumption of
alcohol on public property, and I doubt that one exists.

On the other hand, I have looked for, and found, one Missouri city's
ordinance that bans open containers and consumption of alcohol in some
public places.  Relevant municipal ordinances will all differ, of
course, and I doubt very much whether there is a convenient collection
of them.  If you are particularly interested in the law of one city or
county in Missouri, I would be happy to try to try to track it down
for you.


markj-ga

---

Clarification of Question by greencandy-ga on 05 Sep 2004 10:09 PDT

markj-ga - 

I am looking to know whether the consumption of alcohol is legal in
public areas of St. Louis County and particularly the City of Clayton.
 It would be nice to know the policies in the surrounding cities as
well - namely University City and the city of St. Louis - but I can
find that on my own if you point me in the right direction.

To pose a different question (that does not need to be answered
because I'm sure I didn't pay enough for all of this), I am also
interested in laws on the consumption of alcohol on private property
or in private homes by underage citizens.  As far as I know, alcoholic
possession is legal by minors with parent/guardian/custodian
consent/presence but I am unsure if that is on public or private
property only, or both.  At this point, I'm assuming that it refers to
both public or private property, but I don't know the exact law, and
I'm not sure what "consent" means if this adult is not present. 
Alcoholic "consumption" by underage citizens appears to be legal
anywhere (although that's not to say that people can get actually away
with it considering there are still purchase and possession laws.) 
Anyway, if anyone can help me out on this, that's be great.

Thanks!

greencandy --

Thanks for your clarification, and I have been to find the specific
laws you have referenced, plus a little more relevant information.   A
comprehensive answer for every sizable municipality in Missouri would
be very impractical, but in light of your clarification I hope that
what I have will more than meet your needs.

First, in a very wordy ordinance, the city of Clayton generally
forbids possessing alcoholic beverages in most public places
?intending to drink, drinking, or having drunk? them, with certain
exceptions.  Here what its law says:

?Sec. 17-12. Drinking in public. 
Any person who shall use, distribute, possess, purchase, sell, or
otherwise obtain any intoxicating liquor, malt liquor or
nonintoxicating beer, and shall be found in the city, with any of said
beverages in his possession, intending to drink, drinking, or having
drunk, any of said beverages, in or on any highway, thoroughfare,
street, alley, place, way, parking lot, or other area open to the
public for vehicular or pedestrian travel or use, regardless of his
legal status or whether owned by the city or other public bodies, or
by private persons, or in any public place shall be deemed guilty of a
misdemeanor. Provided however that the provisions of this section
shall not apply to:
(1)     Any person who has been granted a license or permit as
provided in Chapter 3 of this Code of Ordinances.
(2)     Any person possessing a beverage container containing
alcoholic beverages for immediate consumption, within the boundaries
of a civic event, which was obtained from an authorized
concessionaire.
(3)     Any person possessing a beverage container containing
alcoholic beverages for immediate consumption, within thirty (30) feet
of any designated outdoor dining or outdoor seating area of a
restaurant duly authorized to provide outdoor dining or outdoor
seating for its patrons. This exception shall apply only on those days
when any permit for a civic event has been issued and only for the
time during said event and within thirty (30) minutes thereafter.
(4)     Any person possessing an unopened alcohol beverage container,
outside the boundaries of a civic event, which has been purchased from
a licensed retailer for the purpose of transport to his residence or
other private premises on which he is a invitee, guest, or licensee
for future consumption.
(5)     For purposes of this section 17-12, the following words and
phrases shall have the meanings set forth below, unless the context
otherwise requires:
a.     Alcoholic beverage means intoxicating liquor as defined in
Section 311.020 RSMo.
b.     Beverage container means any metal, glass, plastic, wood,
leather or animal skin or other container, can, bottle, jug or barrel,
sealed or unsealed, designed or used for containing liquids intended
for human consumption.
c.     Civic event means any picnic, fair, festival (except those
festivals described and defined in section 3-37(c) of the Clayton Code
of Ordinances), carnival or other event to which the general public is
invited and for which a permit has been issued for use of public
streets, parks or other public property or within the area of a public
park or other public place.

Clayton Municipal Code: Section 17-12
http://library12.municode.com/gateway.dll/MO/missouri/1410?f=templates&fn=default.htm&npusername=10561&nppassword=MCC&npac_credentialspresent=true&vid=default


Next, University City generally bans the drinking of alcoholic
beverages in public, but not the mere carrying around of a container,
open or otherwise.   Here is its much more concise ordinance:

?Section 9.08.080 Drinking in areas open to the public prohibited.
No person shall drink any intoxicating liquor or nonintoxicating beer
in or upon the streets, sidewalks, parkways, alleys or parking lots of
the city, or other area open to the public for vehicular or pedestrian
use, regardless of their legal status or whether owned by the city or
other public bodies, or by private persons; provided, however, the
provisions of this section shall not apply to block parties nor to the
serving of liquor or nonintoxicating beer at sidewalk cafes duly
licensed under this code. (Prior code § 23-11.1)?

LexisNexis: Municipal Codes: University City, Missouri
http://municipalcodes.lexisnexis.com/codes/university/


The city of St. Louis?s code appears to cover pretty much the same
ground as the University City ordinance:

"A. No person shall drink any nonintoxicating beer or intoxicating
liquor in any park, public building, street, sidewalk, alley, highway,
parking lot, thoroughfare, or other public place unless consumption of
intoxicating liquor or nonintoxicating beer in such place has been
expressly authorized in writing by the Excise Commissioner. Provided,
that nothing herein contained shall be construed to prohibit the
consumption of nonintoxicating beer or intoxicating liquor by working
persons during mealtime near their assigned work areas, or by picnic
groups in public parks, providing that the person or persons consuming
beverages are not noisy, riotous or disorderly in any manner.
St. Louis City Revised Code: 14.05.010
http://www.slpl.lib.mo.us/cco/code/data/t141405.htmknall

Finally, my review of the code of St. Louis County did not turn up any
ordinances dealing with the subject.  Here is a link to the Web page
that I used to search within the County Code:

St. Louis County: County Codes and Ordinaces Search
http://www.co.st-louis.mo.us/council/archive.html 


Additional Information:

Finally, according to a survey called the 2001 Partners in Prevention Coalition 
Campus and Community Policy Survey, the following Missouri public
colleges and universities responded that they are in communities that
ban "open containers" in at least some public places:

Central Missouri State University
Lincoln University
Southwest Missouri State
Truman State University
University of Missouri-Rolla
University of Missouri-Columbia
University of Missouri-Kansas City

University of Missouri-Columbia: Survey
http://www.missouri.edu/~mopip/ccpsurvey.doc


Finally, here is one professor?s view on how students should behave at
Washington U.:

"We don't live in a vacuum. I can't walk down the streets of Clayton
or U City with an open container of beer. Why should students think
they can behave differently than they could in the Loop or in uptown
Clayton?"
Washington U. Record: Alcohol on the Hilltop
http://wupa.wustl.edu/record/archive/1998/11-12-98/articles/alcohol.html



Search Strategy:

I used various Google searches to locate the municipal codes of the
jurisdictions that you mentioned in your clarification.   I also used
more general searches to try to find additional information
(especially compilations of laws) about the ordinances of other
Missouri communities.  This strategy led to the survey cited above. 
Here is just one of many Google searches that I used:

?st. louis? mo OR missouri  ?open container? public
://www.google.com/search?num=100&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&q=%22st.+louis+%22+%22mo+OR+missouri%22+%22open+container%22+public
  
 
Based on your clarification, I am confident that this is the
information you are looking for.   If you are interested in continuing
the ?conversation? about other aspects of alcohol regulation in
Missouri, you may want to consider posting other discrete questions
that should help you to generate that information.

If any of the above is unclear, please ask for clarification before
rating the answer.


markj-ga

This was an incredibly thorough and well organized answer to my
question.  I really appreciate it.  Thanks a lot!

http://www.moga.state.mo.us/STATUTES/C311.HTM

I don't see a relevant state statute.  Maybe it is controlled by the city or county?

Yeah, I couldn't find a relevant state statute either.  ...Which leads
me to believe it is in fact legal to consume alcohol in public if you
are over 21 in Missouri.  But I think you may be right that it is
controlled by the city or county.  Where would I find those laws? 
There is, however, a statute prohibiting cities and counties to punish
people for public intoxication.  On a different note, it is my
impression that underage "posession" of alcohol is illegal, but not
"consumption."  It is unclear as to whether this applies merely to the
public realm or also applies to possession on private property.  If
alcohol possession is indeed illegal on private property, I wonder if
there are any punishments for (legal aged) alcohol providers?  In
addition, even if the law did apply to possession on private property,
wouldn't it be quite hard to enforce considering anyone underage who
had half a brain would immediately drop their drink upon sight of a
police officer, thereby making it impossible for the police to punish
them on the basis of possession (unless there was not a soul 21+
around and a couple cases of beer right by them)?  It would also be
pretty hard to blame 21+ providers because it couldn't be easily
proved and consumption by minors is not illegal.  Anyway, I've never
used this google answer service before, and I'm thoroughly suprised
that someone commented (why? how nice!), so I felt like rambling on in
my curiosity.

"it is my impression that underage "posession" of alcohol is illegal, but not
"consumption."  

I think that you can't consume it without possessing it.  In Illinois,
having the drink in front of you on the table, even if the officer
does not see you consume it, is enough to get an underage consumption
ticket.


"In addition, even if the law did apply to possession on private property,
wouldn't it be quite hard to enforce considering anyone underage who
had half a brain would immediately drop their drink upon sight of a
police officer, thereby making it impossible for the police to punish
them on the basis of possession (unless there was not a soul 21+
around and a couple cases of beer right by them)? "

Same deal as above, I think.  They just write the ticket anyway.  Plus
then you'd be littering.

If Missouri is vague in their assertion that under-21 drinking is
illegal, it is  likely that it is only accidental.  If out-of-state
people under 21 even got that impression, they would start driving to
MO to drink, and driving home drunk, killing people.  MADD would
crucify a politician or ten.  With this CYA social policy in mind, the
courts would quickly squash any assertion that under-21 drinking is
illegal.

The other thing that you probably already know, but is well worth
mentioning here, a cop in a bad mood doesn't want to hear about your
philosophy of the law.  Always remember to treat Mr Leo with quiet,
respectful humbleness.  Even if you receive a citation, maintain this
composure.  *After* it is all over, *then* you go and call your
licensed attorney and he or she will fight it out for you like the
vicious dog that he or she is.  Obnoxious drunks who make threats to
police like "My lawyer this" and "My lawyer that" are only digging
themselves a deeper hole.

Speaking of lawyer, are you interested in the study of law?
http://www.soyouwanna.com/site/syws/lawschool/lawschool.html

just <em>testing</em> to see if i can post html <a
href="http://www.madd.org/home/">links</a> etc.

Hey Google Answers Team, when are you going to add an "edit" function?

3rd from last paragraph above, last word should be "legal."

hmm...guess that html test didn't work.  I'm putting my links on the bottom.
----

Hahaha.  Don't worry.  I'm not trying to get away with anything.  Nor
am I trying to be a lawyer. :)

I totally agree that you cannot consume alcohol without possessing it
(unless its forced down your throat), but posession and consumption,
in the end, remain two very different things.  Like you said, in
Illinois, one can get charged with "underage consumption."  As I said,
there is no such consumption law in Missouri, and I wouldn't so
quickly write that off as accidental.  (Check out their refusal to
pass the open container (in vehicle) law.  The article's old but as
far as I know, they still have not passed this law.  (the link to the
article is at the bottom - source 1)).  An underage consumption law
makes it possible for underage citizens to get in trouble for having
consumed alcohol, even if the consumption was long before their
encounter with the police.  Then again, even though Missouri does not
have an underage consumption law, it is quite probable that a drunk
teenager would get charged with underage possession, even if the
alcohol was no where to be found (although that would be harder to
do.)  The question is what cops are looking for.  Police in Missouri
are probably trained to look for visible alcohol in the hands of
underage citizens as opposed to just looking for drunken teenagers. 
In other states, a much stronger emphasis is probably placed on
looking for underage citizens who are simply intoxicated.  In
Missouri, public intoxication is not, on face value, a crime - even
for underage citizens.

"They just write the ticket anyway.  Plus then you'd be littering."  

Haha.  True.   

"If Missouri is vague in their assertion that under-21 drinking is
illegal, it is  likely that it is only accidental.  If out-of-state
people under 21 even got that impression, they would start driving to
MO to drink, and driving home drunk, killing people.  MADD would
crucify a politician or ten.  With this CYA social policy in mind, the
courts would quickly squash any assertion that under-21 drinking is
illegal."

To assume that out-of-state people under 21 would drive to Missouri
because Missouri has "lax" laws is silly.  There are plenty of
loopholes in other state drinking laws that allow underage citizens to
drink with less fear of getting in trouble (2).  Even in states with
more strict laws about public consumption or the purchase of alcohol,
there are still laws that allow underage alcoholic consumption in the
privacy of your own home (3).  Furthermore, even in states where
underage drinking is not tolerated at all, it still remains pretty
easy to obtain and drink alcohol with little fear of being caught.  So
really, there would be little reason to go to another state just to
drink (unless you live in Utah, which apparently has really strict
alcohol laws. (4).  Still, there are probably a few who might drive to
Missouri...who knows.  In any case, it is obviously illegal in most,
if not all states, to drive under the influence of alcohol.  Not that
that stops people, but to drive to one state to take advantage of
their laws while simultaneously breaking another one is a pretty poor
plan.  Underage drinkers may as well just break the law in their own
hometown rather than drive far away to break an even an even stricter,
more consequential law.  (Although we can't expect that every drinking
plan will be this well thought out.)  It is pretty clear that underage
purchase of alcohol is illegal in most (but aparrently according to
M.A.D.D. not exactly all - see "loophole" link #2) states.  Beyond
that, every state does have different laws.  Missouri is not the only
state that does not have a law against the underage "consumption" of
liquor.  (14 other states also have no such law. (5)  And MADD seems
to be on top of all of this already.  Nevertheless, states can still
get away with quite a few things (but not without consequences.)

"The other thing that you probably already know, but is well worth
mentioning here, a cop in a bad mood doesn't want to hear about your
philosophy of the law.  Obnoxious drunks who make threats to
police like "My lawyer this" and "My lawyer that" are only digging
themselves a deeper hole."

Damn, I like being philosophical.  But oh well.  I'm of age and a
pretty chill drunk (and don't drink often), so hopefully I'll never
have to get all argumentative with a cop. (But law is so fun!  It's
almost too bad I'm not going into law.)
:)

Thanks for the comments! 

Sources:
1 - http://www.mdn.org/2002/STORIES/CONTAIN2.HTM
2 - http://www.madd.org/activism/0,1056,8248,00.html
3 - http://64.233.179.104/search?q=cache:bnujTiVxbJUJ:www.nllea.org/reports/ABCEnforcementLegalResearch.pdf
4 - http://www2.potsdam.edu/alcohol-info/InTheNews/Etc/1080326287.html
5 - http://www3.madd.org/laws/law.cfm?LawID=YCON

Yeah, they really need to add an edit function.  And maybe the ability
to use html.  I understood that you meant "legal" anyhow.

greencandy--

Thanks very much for the kind words, the five stars and the nice tip.

markj-ga