Can you drink alcohol in a car in KY while someone else drives? Here’s what the law says
It goes without saying that driving while under the influence is a crime.
States have been cracking down on drunk drivers for decades, including Kentucky, where the legal limit is the federally recommended 0.08 blood alcohol content. Still, nearly 20% of all highway fatalities in Kentucky are caused by drunk drivers, according to the state Transportation Cabinet’s Office of Highway Safety.
What may be less clear to some drivers is whether it’s OK for a passenger, who isn’t behind the wheel, to have a drink. Here’s a look at Kentucky’s open container laws, including what they say about the matter.
What does Kentucky law say about open alcohol containers in vehicles?
Under Kentucky law, specifically KRS 189.530, a person is guilty of possession of an open alcoholic beverage in a motor vehicle when “he or she has in his or her possession an open alcoholic beverage container in the passenger area of a motor vehicle located on a public highway or on the right-of-way of a public highway.”
One exception laid out in section two of KRS 189.530 is, “nothing in this section shall prohibit the possession of an open alcoholic beverage container by an individual who is strictly a passenger and not the driver, in the passenger area of a motor vehicle maintained or used primarily for the transportation of persons for compensation, such as buses, taxis, and limousines, or in a recreational vehicle, motorhome or motor coach.”
Another exception is also outlined by KRS 243.115.
According to that statute, a restaurant licensed under the state’s liquor laws may permit a patron to remove one opened container of wine from the establishment for consumption off the premises, provided the patron has purchased and partially consumed the bottle of wine with a meal on the restaurant’s premises.
Section two states, “a partially consumed bottle of wine that is removed from the premises shall be securely resealed by the restaurant licensee or its employee before the bottle is removed from the premises. The partially consumed bottle of wine shall be placed in a bag or other container that is secured in a manner that makes it visibly apparent if the container has been subsequently opened or tampered with, and the licensee shall provide a dated receipt for the wine to the patron.”
KRS 243.081 outlines the rules alcohol retailers, like restaurants and bars, must follow on “resealing” open alcoholic beverages.
The subsequent statute, KRS 243.117 goes on to state if the patron is transporting the resealed beverage by motor vehicle, it should be stowed in a locked glove compartment, the vehicle’s trunk or somewhere that is not a passenger area.
How do Kentucky’s laws on this topic compare to other states?
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, six states — Connecticut, Delaware, Missouri, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Virginia — prohibit drivers from consuming alcohol, however, the laws in those states do not extend to passengers in a vehicle.
Except for one state, Guam, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia, all states have laws barring the consumption or possession of open alcohol containers in a motor vehicle, the NCSL explains.
The organizations adds that Mississippi and the Virgin Islands do not have statutes regulating the consumption or possession of alcohol in motor vehicles.
Do you have a question about the law in Kentucky for our service journalism team? We’d like to hear from you. Fill out our Know Your Kentucky form or email ask@herald-leader.com.
This story was originally published September 11, 2023 at 11:18 AM with the headline "Can you drink alcohol in a car in KY while someone else drives? Here’s what the law says."