There are numerous restrictions on what individuals in Texas can and cannot do with alcohol. People need to be a certain age to legally possess and consume alcohol. There are rules that limit what they do after consuming alcohol while under its influence. One of the best-known prohibitions after consuming alcohol involves the operation of a motor vehicle. Motorists also typically know that they cannot drive after drinking or have an open container of alcohol in their vehicles.
Open containers are one of the factors that may complicate or aggravate driving while intoxicated (DWI) charges in Texas. How could an open intoxicant in someone’s vehicle impact potential DWI charges?
It increases the chance of scrutiny and arrest
Police officers don’t generally operate under the assumption that everyone driving is drunk or potentially drunk. Usually, they only look into impairment when there are warning signs that a driver may have had too much to drink. In scenarios where someone’s driving seems acceptable but an officer initiated the traffic stop for some other factor, like a burned-out brake light, the presence of an open container of alcohol in the vehicle could be enough to increase the officer’s scrutiny of the motorist and potentially lead to their arrest. An officer who may have only issued a ticket for a vehicle infraction or speeding offense might instead carefully screen a driver for impairment and arrest them.
It potentially increases the penalties
Having an open intoxicant in the vehicle, including a single can of beer or a partially-consumed bottle of liquor brought home from a party could be enough to cause charges on its own. However, having an open intoxicant and also demonstrating impairment at the wheel or being over the legal limit for one’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) could lead to more serious penalties.
Judges have some degree of discretion regarding the DWI penalties they impose. Everything from the length of the license suspension and someone’s incarceration to the amount of fines that they may have to pay can increase significantly when a judge believes that someone was very flagrant in their law breaking, as might be the case when there are both open containers of alcohol and signs of impairment in the driver.
Understanding how an open bottle of alcohol can impact Texas DWI charges might help those heading home from a party or restaurant make safer choices about their drive home.