Introduction
During the school year, a short walk across the quad gets you to your favorite bar or that big house party. But when you’re at home for the summer, meeting up with old high school friends and hitting the townie bars often requires driving. When it’s your turn to be the designated driver, you may get stuck chauffeuring buddies who want to finish their beer en route to your next destination. Or, you could be driving by yourself with a half bottle of wine on your way to your girlfriend’s house to watch The Notebook. When this happens and you’re pulled over by the police, what happens next?

Transporting open alcohol in your passenger compartment is illegal
Well unfortunately, even if you haven’t consumed a drop of alcohol, you’ve already committed a crime. In Illinois, it is illegal to “transport, carry, possess or have any alcoholic liquor within the passenger area of any motor vehicle upon a highway . . . except in the original container and with the seal unbroken.”

Some Illinois courts have found that because this is a “petty offense” (one usually punishable by fine only), a form of strict liability may be imposed on the driver. This means that the statute applies even if you were unaware of the alcohol smuggled into your car. In other words, pretending like you didn’t notice the tapped pony keg in the backseat isn’t going to work.

On the bright side, however, the statute also provides a simple solution. You’re only guilty of this offense if the open alcohol is in your “passenger compartment.” So, if you plan on taking home the rest of that Skol bottle you brought to the party, you can always throw it in your trunk. However, if you’re driving a jeep or station wagon you may be out of luck because the entire car could be considered the “passenger compartment.” In that case, you can just act like a baller and donate the remaining $2.87of liquor to the party.

Implications for DUIs
In terms of a DUI, having open alcohol in your vehicle does not necessarily mean that you’ll be arrested for, or convicted of, driving under the influence. Driving with open alcohol is a separate offense from DUI. So, it is certainly possible to be guilty of one and not guilty of the other. However, the presence of open alcohol in your passenger compartment is still circumstantial evidence the State can use to show that you: (1) consumed the alcohol missing from that open container; and/or (2) were using poor judgment and thus more likely to be intoxicated.

If you really haven’t been drinking at all, this is a rare occasion where taking a breath test could be a smart way to clear up the confusion. As always though, there are a lot of risks associated with taking a breath test. These devices are not perfect and a variety of innocent activities can effect their reliability (including, using mouthwash, for instance). If the breathalyzer is mis-calibrated and you come out above a .08, you now have the arduous task of proving the machine’s inaccuracy in court. Also remember, if you’re under 21, you have less room for error since anything above a .00 is going to result in the suspension of your license.

Conclusion
Again, this article based on Illinois law. As a result, these offense(s) and their punishment(s) may vary from state to state. However, almost every jurisdiction makes it a crime to have open alcohol in your passenger compartment. Therefore, the best idea is to have a policy against any open alcohol in your vehicle. If your friends complain, remind them that you’re making the sacrifice by being the designated driver and waiting 10 minutes for their next beer is a much better option than jogging to the next bar. Have a great and safe summer.