Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Blog
Are You Safe From Public Intoxication Charges in a Social District?
Many people enjoy meeting friends and having fun at bars and clubs. Pub or bar crawls have become popular social trends. A bar crawl is a term to describe going from bar to bar during the evening. These are fun, social events that allow people to meet others and enjoy beer or other alcoholic beverages with friends. However, there are some concerns that people could have if they are found to be drunk in public. Public intoxication and disorderly conduct charges sometimes go hand-in-hand in cases where a drunk person is involved in a fight.
Public Intoxication Is Not A Crime
In North Carolina, public intoxication on its own is not a crime. However, drunk and disorderly is a Class 3 misdemeanor. Drunk and disorderly encompasses several actions such as fighting or shoving, cursing or loud yelling, blocking traffic, interfering with a building entrance, or begging for money in a public location. A person who is intoxicated cannot be charged unless their behavior breaks the law. Disorderly conduct is a common charge that may be made when a person is not conducting themselves properly, whether they are intoxicated or not. It is also illegal to walk around publicly with an open container of alcohol except in designated social districts.
What is a Social District?
A social district is a designated area where open alcohol is allowed. Social districts are designed to provide a specific place where people can patronize local establishments and walk between them with open containers. There is currently one social district in Charlotte. Only alcoholic beverages purchased from an authorized establishment are allowed. Beverages must be in properly marked containers and are allowed only in the designated district during specific hours. Although patrons of businesses in the social district are allowed to carry open alcohol, they are not exempt from potential charges, such as intoxicated and disruptive.
Intoxicated and Disruptive
North Carolina General Statutes 14-444 states, “it shall be unlawful for any person in a public place to be intoxicated and disruptive”. The common name for this charge is drunk and disorderly. Intoxication simply refers to being drunk or exhibiting signs of being affected by alcohol. If convicted of intoxicated and disruptive charges, you could face penalties that include a jail sentence, fines, community service, participation in alcohol classes, and probation. You will want to discuss the matter with an attorney before you make a plea to the judge.
Defending Drunk and Disorderly Charges
Intoxicated and disorderly charges are serious. You will want to vigorously defend the charges in court. One possible defense to intoxicated and disruptive charges is alcoholism. The judge may defer the proceedings for up to 15 days while a determination is made as to whether the person suffers from alcoholism, also known as alcohol use disorder. This is typically called a 15-day psychiatric hold, during which time you will be evaluated by professionals. If found to be suffering from alcohol use disorder, you may be referred for alcohol use disorder treatment.
To learn more, contact our legal team at Arnold & Smith, PLLC, at (704) 370-2828 for a consultation.
The criminal defense attorneys at Arnold & Smith, PLLC make it their mission to zealously defend their clients on a wide range of criminal matters at both the state and federal levels. These matters may include any charge from traffic offenses; DWI/DUI; drug charges (from simple possession to possession with intent to distribute and trafficking); gun permit denials; weapons offenses; and property crimes (larceny, breaking and entering, robbery, fraud, embezzlement, white collar offenses); to sexually related offenses (indecent exposure; sexual assault, crimes against nature, removal from sex offender registry); and violent crimes (domestic violence; assault; manslaughter; homicide, murder). Other legal issues that Arnold & Smith, PLLC criminal clients may be facing include restraining orders, restraining order and probation violations, expungements; appeals; and immigration issues related to criminal charges. Our criminal defense attorneys are passionate about ensuring that individuals empower themselves by being informed about their constitutional rights, and stand at the ready to fight in the defense of those facing criminal charges.
Source:
https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_14/GS_14-444.html
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