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maleficent · 03-24-2006, 07:59 AM

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Don't party too hardy in Texas.

The booze patrol is looking for drunks, even in Lone Star State saloons.
The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission is sending undercover officers into bars to spot those who over imbibe.

Agency spokeswoman Carolyn Beck says drinking is fine. But she says when people drink too much, they become dangerous.

The enforcement program also targets underage drinking and bartenders who continue to serve drunks. Public intoxication carries a possible 500-dollar fine and a few hours in the drunk tank to sober-up.

State on the lookout for overly drunk bar patrons

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By JIM VERTUNOTHE ASSOCIATED PRESSAUSTIN -- Get fall-down drunk in a bar and it may cost you more than a bruised backside: Try $500 or a few hours in jail.

The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission is sending undercover officers into bars to look for exceedingly drunk customers, issuing citations or making arrests for public intoxication even if patrons haven't left the building.

"Drinking is fine," agency spokeswoman Carolyn Beck said. "But when people drink too much, they become dangerous to themselves and other people."

The program was started to reduce drunken driving. It focuses not only on those who are drunk but also on the bars and bartenders who continue to serve them and those who serve underage drinkers. So far, it has resulted in about 2,200 arrests or citations statewide.

According to the Mothers Against Drunk Driving Web site, Texas had 1,264 alcohol-related traffic fatalities in 2004, the most in the nation.

"We're trying to reduce that and save lives," Beck said.

B.J. Hassell, manager of victim services with MADD Texas State, which serves 29 counties in Central Texas, said her organization supports the crackdown.

"Can you imagine if TABC had not stopped those people from leaving the bar, how many more drunk drivers we might have had on the road?" Hassell said.
The most recent sting was March 10, when agents infiltrated more than 30 bars in Irving, arresting or citing dozens of people. Karen Smith, a spokeswoman for the commission in Fort Worth, said that such crackdowns have happened routinely in the Dallas-Fort Worth area over the past year.
The goal is to eradicate problem spots, Smith said. After the initial arrests of everyone involved, agents will return to the bars over the next week to "provide education for the employees and managers so they will serve alcohol more safely."

In Texas, the legal threshold for driving while intoxicated is a blood alcohol level of 0.08. But the law also defines public intoxication as "not having the normal use of mental or physical faculties" because of alcohol or other drugs.
Public intoxication is a Class C misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $500. An offender can be cited or arrested. Many jails require anyone arrested to be detained for at least four to 12 hours.

Bar patrons may be approached if an officer spots them behaving erratically. The officer will perform a field sobriety test similar to one for drunken drivers. A suspect may also be asked to take a breath test, although it is not required, Beck said.

Most people who take the breath test have a blood alcohol level of 0.17 or higher, she said. "These people who are being arrested are really drunk," she said. "We're not going up to random people."

And having a designated driver isn't an excuse to be knee-wobbling drunk.
"There are plenty of dangerous things people do without getting behind the wheel of a car," Beck said.

She cited a recent case in El Paso where a man staggered into traffic and was killed, and one in South Padre Island where a student on spring break died when he tried to jump into a hotel pool from a second-floor window.
"When people drink, they lose their inhibitions," she said. "That's when people start making bad decisions."

The decision on targeting a bar is based on whether it is frequently cited by drunken-driving suspects as the last place they had a drink, whether it is in an area where police routinely make drunken-driving stops or whether police have been called there numerous times.

Beck acknowledged that many people may be surprised to learn that they can be arrested for being drunk in a bar. "It is legal to go out and drink in a bar," she said. "We are trying to get the message out that we want bars to sell responsibly and consumers to consume responsibly."

Staff writer Caren M. Penland contributed to this report.
1,264 Alcohol-related fatalities in Texas in 2004, leading the nation, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving
$500 Maximum fine for public intoxication, a Class C misdemeanor
0.17 Blood alcohol level of most people who take the breath test as part of the crackdown, according to the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission
0.08 Legal blood alcohol limit for Texas motorists

Some more info on the crackdown... .17 is pretty darned drunk...

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"When people drink, they lose their inhibitions," she said. "That's when people start making bad decisions."

Well- I guess this will also cut down onthe number of hookups based on beer goggle syndrome...

/me makes note to never go to texass again...