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Public Intoxication Law Vague in Iowa

Thursday, January 15, 2009 by Mark Thompson

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Does the public have a right to be on the public streets?…when may have consumed a small amount of alcohol…

That’s the issue in the Iowa Court of Appeals case State v. Bolden in 2005. Mr. Bolden was arrested for public intoxication, and he argued that the statute was unclear, vague and overbroad. He stated that the current public intoxication law results in:

“Iowa Citizens, of a majority age, who may have consumed a small amount of alcohol are chilled from exercising their constitutional right to traverse and associate on public streets for fear they may become targets of arbitrary and capricious seizures.”

I think he brings up a good point. Many people arrested for public intoxication in Iowa City’s downtown environment can point to the other people around them that were “more drunk that I was.” The vagueness of Iowa’s public intoxication law is was leads to these “arbitrary and capricious” situations. 

The Public Intoxication statue simply outlaws being "intoxicated" or even "simulating" intoxication.  And unfortunately, there is very little Iowa Supreme Court caselaw to expand upon this.  I guess that can be explained by crossing the expense and time for an appeal with the relatively low punishment for the average charge.

Contact Iowa City Criminal Lawyer Mark Thompson for questions on Iowa cases.

 
Posted at 11:38 AM
Topic: Criminal Law
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