Finding drunks in a bar -- what are the chances?
Texas has begun sending undercover agents into bars to arrest drinkers for being drunk, a spokeswoman for the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission said on Wednesday. The first sting operation was conducted recently in a Dallas suburb where agents infiltrated 36 bars and arrested 30 people for public intoxication, said the commission's Carolyn Beck.
Ref. https://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060323/od_nm/bars1_dc
While I don't drink, personally, I think the personal liberty legal implications of this are huge. It won't stop in Irving, Texas.
QUOTE |
TABC agents and Irving police swept through 36 Irving bars and arrested about 30 people on charges of public intoxication. Agency representatives say the move came as a proactive measure to curtail drunken driving. North Texans interviewed by NBC 5, however, worried that the sweep went too far. At one location, for example, agents and police arrested patrons of a hotel bar. Some of the suspects said they were registered at the hotel and had no intention of driving. Arresting authorities said the patrons were a danger to themselves and others. |
I have to agree with FarSeer. This is taking things a bit too far. How would the authorities know whether these people had designated drivers, or like the article pointed out, that they were going to be driving at all? It reminds me of the movie Minority Report, where there was a Pre-crime division and people were arrested before they committed a crime. Trying to enforce something before it happens is just not the way to go.