California IN BRIEF : ORANGE COUNTY : ‘Non-Alcohol’ Beer Arrests on Hold

The California Highway Patrol is expected today to instruct officers not to arrest motorists who drink “non-alcoholic” beers while behind the wheel. CHP officials have increasingly received inquiries about whether the drinks--which contain less than 0.5% alcohol--violate the state’s open container law. The California Vehicle Code states that drinks containing any amount of liquor are “alcoholic beverages” and cannot be consumed inside a moving vehicle. However, the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control classifies drinks containing less than 0.5% alcohol as “non-alcoholic.”