Open Container Law Targets the Homeless
Dear Editor:
The newspaper has blamed the Police for targeting the homeless. The fault lies not with the police, but with the City Commission. Our open container law, Ordinance 18-87 is designed to target the homeless. In order to violate the statute, you must be drunk while drinking in public. Then, on the first offense, the police can only give a warning. When the Police encounter a drunk tourist drinking, they are required to take away the open container and issue a warning. The tourist goes back home and there is no issue. For the local homeless, they document a few warnings and then the homeless drunk gets sixty days in jail courtesy of the Sheriff.
The worst part of the statute is the sign requirement. Our City Commission likes to send “messages.” Bars are required to post a sign which says it is illegal to drink on the streets of Key West; this simply sends the message that there are no rules in Key West.
This is similar to Commissioner Weekly’s proposal to send a message that the City is concerned about nudity at Fantasy Fest by reducing the size of the Fantasy Zone. Key West already has a nudity ordinance, 42-9, that criminalizes most women’s swimwear and some women’s formalwear. The ordinance is overbroad and unenforceable. Our City Commissioners are more concerned about sending messages than having reasonable ordinances which uphold our community values.
John Walsh
Key West
How about change the law or enforce the law equally? One or the other, because, yes, the police selectively enforce it. Tell bar patrons to finish their drinks before they leave the bar. Not a tough request. That would leave the police free to enforce the law fairly. Drunk tourist, drunk street person, same treatment.
This is simple to understand. A homeless person can’t afford to drink in bars so pretty much means they are not welcome to live in Key West. It is a systematic solution for KW to get rid of homeless. They want tourist dollars and you can watch live cams on Duval any night and see open containers. It is like any law and the cops use it to control a problem when needed. I think the cops use it with good judgement. Sure plenty of drunks walking Duval and that is normal and part of being a party town.