Tennessee Open Container Law

This seems to be one of the most misunderstood laws in the State of Tennessee. I hear quite a few times a month, "hey that is an open container violation". Ok so what does that exactly mean? For the record I would say to anyone that might ask, it is just simply much easier to make sure you never have an open container in the vehicle, with that said, I will explain the actual law.

Open container in Tennessee means:

(1) No driver shall possess any alcoholic beverage or possess an open container of alcoholic beverage or beer while operating a motor vehicle in this state.

(2)Open container means any container containing alcoholic beverages or beer, the contents of which are immediately capable of being consumed or the seal of which has been broken.

(3)An open container is in the possession of the driver when it is not in the possession of any passenger and is not located in a closed glove compartment, trunk or non passenger area of the vehicle, and the a motor vehicle is in operation if it's engine is operating, whether or not the motor vehicle is moving.

The question I most get asked is this, "can a passenger in the car have an open beer in Tennessee? The answer is yes, but again I would never recommend this to anyone at anytime, it just causes way to many problems, but again it is not illegal in most places in Tennessee, at this time.

The second question is, "what if I have a broken seal on a bottle of bourbon or wine, and the bottle is next to me, I am not drinking any, just taking it home or to party?" My advice would be to put it in the trunk or lock it in glove box, because technically under the statute in Tennessee you have an open container if you are by yourself and have a broken seal of alcohol accessible to you in your vehicle.

With that said, you need to check with your local municipality or county, because under the statute 55-10-416, a city or county may have the right to pass an ordinance or resolution to prohibit passengers from having open containers, with that language in the statute it makes it an ever more confusing situation to most people.

Nashville DUI Child Endangerment

I was seated at a restaurant in Nashville, Tennessee the other evening, upon being seated I noticed a couple next to me with one small child of approximately 2 years old, I also noticed two empty wine bottles on the table with their dirty dishes from their meal. I thought to myself, I bet these people have no idea what they are about to do, they looked like a nice family and I am just guessing, but would assume they have never had a Nashville DUI or any type of arrest for DUI in Tennessee.

It was not so much the DUI that I was thinking about, I am sure the couple never gave it one thought that if they got pulled over by the Metro Police Department they might have another charge far greater than a DUI, they may have a child endangerment charge. The two charges of DUI and child endangerment do not merge, however under the DUI there is a mandatory time of 30 days and a 1 thousand dollar fine for violation of the DUI laws associated with child endangerment in Tennessee. Further problems include the judge contacting the state Department of Human Services to report the conviction, the list of problems from this charge can go on for quite awhile.

The penalties only get worse in regards to child endangerment and a DUI when the child is hurt in an accident and you are charged with a DUI. If the child suffers serious bodily injury and you are charged with a DUI you can face a class D felony and 2 to 4 years in the jail, if the child is killed in an accident and you are DUI charged, you may face a class C felony which carries a 3 to 6 year penalty. The other issue that you may face is stacking of the sentences, since DUI and child endangerment are separate offenses, one may face the possibility of the two sentences being stacked, that is doing your jail time for the DUI in Tennessee, and then doing your jail time for the child endangerment charge in Tennessee.

Finally there is the issue of you having two children in the car and being arrested for DUI, does that mean there are two separate charges for child endangerment in Tennessee? The answer to that question is no, you can only be charged with one violation of child endangerment no matter how many children are in the car.

Not all DUI charges in Tennessee go to the young party going crowd, DUI charges in Tennessee span a large volume of people from every walk of life.

Date Rape, Alcohol as the Drug

I am often asked by young men, especially high school age young men, what is the definition of rape in Tennessee. We all understand the horrific nature of the crime, however what some people do not realize is that many rapes in Tennessee are not by strangers. Many allegations of rape hinge on quite literally he said she said, and the parties know each other.

So in Tennessee what is rape? It is the unlawful sexual penetration of a victim by the defendant or of the defendant by a victim accompanied by any of the following circumstances:

Force or coercion is used to accomplish the act;

The sexual penetration is accomplished without the consent of the victim and the defendant knows or has reason to know at the time of the penetration that the victim did not consent;

The defendant knows or has reason to know that the victim is mentally defective, mentally incapacitated, or physically helpless;

Sexual penetration is accomplished by fraud.

That is the legal definition. The question posed to me quite often is what if someone is drunk? The answer lies in the details of was the person mentally incapacitated at the time of the penetration, (penetration does not have to be with a body organ, it can be with an object).

Lets say a young couple of high school age has been drinking together, they start drinking around 8 pm, each of the individuals has about 5 beers over the course of the night. They are parked at the end of a road. The couple has never engaged in a sexual act before this night, the young man thinks it is ok to kiss on the young woman, but then thinks it is ok to proceed further by engaging in a sexual act with the young lady, while she is intoxicated. If later the next day the young lady states that she did not consent to the sexual act there can be a charge of rape filed in Tennessee. It is a matter of perspective as to whether or not she consented to the sexual act. It is here we find the he said she said problem. This situation is often referred to as Date Rape by the media.

My advice to young people is to simply avoid this situation, if you do not know whether or not she is consenting then avoid the situation all together.

Providing alcohol to a minor in Tennessee and social host liability

So your 20 year old friend wants you to buy some beer for the weekend party, no big deal right, your 21, whats really wrong? In Tennessee you can find yourself in quite the mess if your 20 year old friend explains to the police that you bought the beer. http://nashvilleduiinfo.com

Did you know in Tennessee by violating section 39-15-404 (which is the code section for purchasing alcohol for a minor), you can lose your license to drive for a year. Not only can you lose your license, you may also have to perform around 100 hours of community service, and it is a class A misdemeanor that will carry with it 11 months and 29 days probation.

Further one should know that if you furnish alcohol to someone under age 21, that underage person need only test .02% blood alcohol level in Tennessee to be considered impaired while driving. Now in Tennessee a minor under the age of 21 is eligible to serve the mandatory minimum jail sentence in Tennessee of 48 hours.

A collateral issue involving purchasing alcohol for minors is the liability civilly for the minors actions. An example might be you have a party for your daughter's friends in Nashville, you don't serve alcohol, you don't provide alcohol, but you make provisions such as everyone has to put their keys in a jar and stay the night, you patrol your yard to make sure no one leaves, and someone does leave intoxicated. You might be held liable in Tennessee based on common law theories of liability. It is the undertaking of a duty that may hold you liable, not the providing of the alcohol, if it was not sold to the minors.

Tennessee does have a statute that shields liability for this and similar actions of providing alcohol. The Tennessee Supreme Court has held that the alcohol is the proximate cause of the injury to a third party, not the person who provided the alcohol, unless the alcohol was sold to the minor and not given to the minor. However, once you take an affirmative duty to provide a safe party for the minors, you may find yourself sued should one of the minors leave intoxicated and cause harm to a third party.

Nashville Craigslist prostitution

Prostitution in Nashville, Tennessee is the crime of engaging in, or offering to engage in sexual activity as a business or being an inmate in a house of prostitution or loitering in a public place for the purpose of being hired to engage in sexual activity.http://nashvilleduiinfo.com

It is to say the least not an enjoyable moment when a client realizes that they have been caught
in a Nashville Craigslist sting for prostitution, (lately there have been many stings using the popular Craigslist). It is embarrassing, it can cost you a job, your automobile, and many other social repercussions. Some people have said to me from time to time that they thought, only the person selling sex can get in trouble, well that is incorrect in Tennessee. Nashville prostitution charges can carry a great many problems for clients, and the government does not care whether you arranged your prostitute by Craigslist or picked her up on the street, it is still the crime of patronizing prostitution.

The charge in Tennessee is called patronizing prostitution, it is a class B misdemeanor and can carry with it penalties, fines and jail time. Many people in Nashville who are charged with this crime do not realize that if you are within 100 hundred feet of a church and patronizing prostitution it becomes a class A misdemeanor and can carry with it 11 months and 29 days in jail. I might add that there is another boundary issue to consider in this charge. If you are within 1 and half miles of a school, it then becomes a class A misdemeanor and a mandatory 7 days in jail and a 1 thousand dollar fine.

There have been some arrests in Nashville for promoting prostitution, that is a class E felony and can carry a sentence in jail of 1 to 2 years. In Nashville there have been some local arrests due to promotion of prostitution through media prints via newspapers.

However, the vast majority of new prostitution stings have come via Craigslist and the internet in Nashville.

Restricted Driver's License in Tennessee

What is a restricted driver's license in Tennessee? Often you hear that you will lose your license in Tennessee if you are convicted of a first offense DUI, is that true? Yes, in Tennessee upon your conviction for a first offense DUI you will have to forfeit your license to the Tennessee Department of Safety, and if you are eligible then you may apply for a restricted driver's license. http://nashvilleduiinfo.com

If you meet certain criteria in Tennessee you may apply for a restricted drivers license. Some of the criteria are; you may not in the last ten years have had a prior DUI; you must obtain SR-22 insurance; no prior conviction for vehicular homicide; aggravated vehicular homicide; or vehicular assault by intoxication. If you meet these criteria you may apply for a restricted driver's license from the judge that heard your case or plea.

So you might ask, on a restricted driver's license in Tennessee where can I drive? Under 55-10-403(s) there are many places you may drive, some places include safety programs ordered by the court, college classes, litter pick up, religious services, and work. However one should note that being a part time student or those searching for work, does not meet the criteria.

Where do you have to go to get your restricted driver's license? In Tennessee once the judge signs you order you must take two certified copies of the Order along with your SR-22 insurance to the DMV station. It is there you will take the eye exam and driving test to obtain your restricted license.

Will the judge sign the Order for my restricted driver's license in Tennessee if I owe court costs and fines? It depends on the county you are in, some counties in Tennessee will make you pay a fraction down on the costs and set you up on a payment plan, other counties will make you pay the entire amount before they issue you the Order to take to the Tennessee DMV station. It is entirely up to the jurisdiction you are in.