Tarleton State University Police Department

Tarleton State University
Police Department
House Bill No. 2639
Alcohol, Illegal Drugs and Penalties

Texas
Alcohol Laws
and Punishments
http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes/index.htm

Common Alcohol Violations
Minor In Possession (Alcohol)
A person who is a minor (under 21 years of age) who is found to be in
possession on an alcoholic beverage of any kind is in violation.
An example of this is the 19 year old student who
has not been consuming the alcohol but is caught
walking across the parking lot carrying a case of beer.
This person is in care, custody and control of the beer
making him/her a Minor in Possession. A citation or an
arrest could be made in this situation.
Fines: Up to $250
Plus loss of driver’s license, 8 hr. Alcohol Awareness Class (Offender’s
expense) and community service (1st Offense). 2nd offense includes
longer driver’s license suspension and 20 hr. Alcohol Awareness Class.

Common Alcohol Violations
Minor In Consumption
Minor in consumption is just that! Just taking a sip of one beer
violates the law. The only exception to this is if your parent or
spouse is with you and giving you the alcohol to consume.
Fines: Up to $250
Plus loss of driver’s license, 8 hr. Alcohol Awareness Class at the
Offender’s expense and community service (1st Offense). 2nd
offense includes longer driver’s license suspension and 20 hr.
Alcohol Awareness Class.

Common Alcohol Violations
Public Intoxication
Occurs when a person appears in public while intoxicated to the degree that the
person may endanger himself/herself or others due to the impairment of mental or
physical faculties.
The officer is not required to give you a breath test or a field sobriety test to show that
you are intoxicated.
Generally you get to sober up in jail, unless there is a
responsible sober adult that is willing to accept
responsibility for you and the officer deems it not
necessary for a trip to jail.
Fines: Up to $250
Plus loss of driver’s license, 8 hr. Alcohol Awareness Class (Offender’s expense) and
community service (1st Offense). 2nd offense includes longer driver’s license
suspension and 20 hr. Alcohol Awareness Class.

Common Alcohol Violations
Driving Under the Influence
Not to be confused with Driving While Intoxicated. The police only have to show that
a minor has a detectible amount of alcohol in their system. One beer could be
considered a detectible amount.
For 1st and 2nd offense.
Fines: Up to $250
Plus loss of driver’s license, 8 hr. Alcohol Awareness Class (Offender’s
expense) and community service (1st Offense). 2nd offense includes
longer driver’s license suspension and 20 hr. Alcohol Awareness Class.
The third offense under this statute carries up to:
Fines:
Up to 180 days in jail
and/or a fine up to $2,000

Common Alcohol Violations
Disorderly Conduct
Disorderly conduct encompasses a variety of behaviors including: loud
noise (such as a party), fighting, and being vulgar in a public place. The
fine depends on the seriousness of the behavior and is up to the judge.
Remember if you are having a party at your house or apartment, you are
responsible.
Certain behaviors are a Class B misdemeanor and are under the jurisdiction
of the County Court. Those violations carry even stiffer punishments.
Fines: Up to $500

Common Alcohol Violations
Purchase / Furnish Alcohol to a Minor
Furnishing alcohol to a minor or providing a place for a
minor to consume alcohol is a serious Class A
misdemeanor and is under the jurisdiction of the County
Court. A Class A misdemeanor is one step below a
felony.
Fines: Up to $4,000.00
and Up to 1 yr. in Jail
(Fine does not include court cost and lawyer fees)

Driving While Intoxicated
A person is Driving While Intoxicated when having a blood alcohol concentration of
0.08 or more while operating a motor vehicle.
The 1 st offense is a Class B misdemeanor
Fines:
Confinement in jail for up to 180 days
and a fine up to $2,000
The 2 nd offense is a Class A misdemeanor
Fines:
Confinement in jail a minimum of 30 days & up to one year
and a fine not to exceed $4,000
The 3 rd offense is a third degree felony
Fines:
2 to 10 years in Prison
and a fine not to exceed $10,000
(Fines do not include court cost and lawyer fees)

Driving While Intoxicated
How much alcohol causes a 0.08% Blood
Alcohol Level (BAC)?
It is generally accepted that the consumption of
two standard drinks (containing a total of 20
grams) of alcohol will increase the average
person's BAC to roughly 0.05%
A single standard drink consumed each hour
after the first two will keep the bodies’ BAC at
approximately 0.05%

Driving While Intoxicated
STATISTICS
Over 1.46 million drivers were arrested in 2006 for
driving under the influence of alcohol or narcotics. This is
an arrest rate of 1 for every 139 licensed drivers in the
United States.
Alcohol-related crashes in the United States cost the
public an estimated $114.3 billion in 2000

Driving While Intoxicated
INTOXICATION ASSAULT
affects others too
A person commits an offense if the person, by accident
or mistake while operating a motor vehicle while
intoxicated by means of alcohol or a controlled
substance causes serious bodily injury to another.
An offense under this section is a felony of the third degree.
Fines:
2 to 10 years in Prison
and a fine not to exceed $10,000

Driving While Intoxicated
affects others too
INTOXICATION MANSLAUGHTER
A person commits an offense if the person operates a
motor vehicle and is intoxicated by means of alcohol or a
controlled substance and by reason of that intoxication
causes the death of another by accident or mistake.
An offense under this section is a felony of the second degree.
Fines:
2 to 20 years in Prison
and a fine not to exceed $10,000

Driving While Intoxicated
STATISTICS
In 2006, an estimated
17,602 people died in
alcohol-related traffic
crashes.
Three in every 10
Americans will be involved
in an alcohol-related crash
in their lives.

Texas
Illegal Drug Laws
and Punishments
http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes/index.htm

Possession of Drug
Paraphernalia
A person who uses or possesses, with intent to use any
device that is used to test, weigh, package, store, or
ingest a narcotic is in violation.
However, the possession of a device, such as a bong,
which has never been used to smoke marijuana or any
other drug is considered to be a legal possession if it is
uses to smoke another legal substance such a hookah, a
tobacco product.
A violation of this is a Class C Misdemeanor
Fine: Up to $500

Marijuana
Cannabis, also known as
marijuana or marihuana is a
psychoactive product of the
plant Cannabis sativa,
The herbal form of the drug
consists of dried mature
flowers and subtending leaves
of pistillate (female) plants.
The major biologically active
chemical compound in
cannabis is
tetrahydrocannabinol
commonly referred to as THC.

Possession of Marijuana
The possession of a usable quantity of
Marijuana (2 oz. or less) is an offense under
state law.
This offense is a Class B Misdemeanor
Fine:
Confinement in jail for up to 180 days
and a fine up to $2,000
(Fines do not include court cost and lawyer fees)

Possession of Marijuana
The more marijuana you have the higher the offense
classification.
2 oz. < 4 oz. Class A Misdemeanor
4 oz. < 5 lbs. State Jail Felony
5 lbs. < 50 lbs. 3 rd Degree Felony
50 lbs. < 2000 lbs. 2 nd Degree Felony
2000 lbs. or more 1 st degree Felony
Punishments range up to 99 years or life and up to $50,000

Possession of Prescription
Dangerous Drugs
The unlawful possession (as in they were not prescribed
for you) of certain dangerous prescription drugs is a
Class A misdemeanor
Fines: Up to $4,000.00
and Up to 1 yr. in Jail

Controlled Substances (Drugs)
Many of these drugs come in many different forms. Some can come
in crystal, powder, and liquid. Here are some examples.
Black Tar Heroin
Cocaine powder Methamphetamine powder
Methadone Pills Psilocin (Mushrooms)
Harvesting opium poppy

Possession of Controlled
Substances (Drugs)
Heroin, Cocaine, Methamphetamine, Methadone, Psilocin (Mushrooms), Mescaline, and
The Opiates
Dangerous Drugs such as the above are those types of drugs that have no medicinal
value.
Possession of these major drugs carries varied punishments and even the
possession of only a single usable amount still carries a State Jail Felony
punishment.
Fines: Up to two years in jail
and a fine of up to $10,000
Punishments for possession over a usable amount can be as high as:
15-99 years or life and up to $250,000 fine

Manufacture of Controlled
Substances (Drugs)
The manufacturing of these Dangerous Drugs
usually carry even stiffer penalties than the
possession of these drugs.
Punishments for manufacture of
dangerous drugs can be anywhere
from a state jail felony to
a 1 st degree felony
The punishments can be as high as:
15-99 years or life and up to $250,000 fine

The Far Reaching Effects of
Alcohol and Drug Law Violations
The conviction of these offenses will often become a part of the offender’s
permanent criminal record. Often employers contact the police departments
and courts as part of the job application background check.
Alcohol and Drug violations can have far reaching effects on a person’s
future especially in fields such as Education, Political Science, and Law
Enforcement. A single arrest for many of these offenses can cause even
the most qualified job applicant to be passed over. Wouldn’t that be a
shame if you missed out on a job for something you did five or ten years
earlier in your life.
People who drive while intoxicated and cause the death or injury of another
have to live with that on their conscience for the rest of their lives. Not to
mention the criminal and civil consequences of such an act.
Some drugs such as LSD WILL remain in your system forever, and many
drugs cause a lasting addiction after the first use that a person would have
to fight for the rest of their lives.