Friend recently had a run-in with the State Patrol that ended badly. He owns a tree removal business and specializes in hard-to-remove trees in yards, being licensed, bonded and insured. After a day's work he was heading home with his crew in a couple of his trucks when he was stopped for some reason by the South Carolina State Patrol. One of his employees was drinking a beer, but he was not. He was harassed by the SP and told to submit to a breath-alyzer test. He was angry and refused, after repeatedly telling the officer he was not drinking, whereupon he was taken to a facility where he took the breath-alyzer test and blew a 0.00. Trooper was surprised and embarrassed and took my friend's licenses. He was told he has to do 20 hours of community service to get them back. He has retained a lawyer. I hope he sues, and wins.
From Microsoft bing ai search…
“In South Carolina, an open container of alcohol is defined as any container that has been opened, had its seal broken, or a portion of its contents removed, and which contains any amount of alcoholic beverage. This includes not only bottles or cans of alcohol that have been opened, but also cups, flasks, or any other type of container that holds alcohol and is not fully sealed or closed. It is important to note that having an open container of alcohol in a vehicle, even if the driver is not actively drinking from it, is a violation of South Carolina’s open container laws.
Additionally, it is illegal for passengers in a vehicle to possess open containers of alcohol, not just the driver. This means that all passengers in a vehicle are prohibited from having open containers of alcohol in their possession while the vehicle is in operation.”
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The New South
