Minors, You Are What You Drink: Arkansas's New Spin on Minors in Possession of Alcohol
![handle is hein.journals/arklr65 and id is 1003 raw text is: Minors, You Are What You Drink!: Arkansas's
New Spin on Minors in Possession of Alcohol*
I. INTRODUCTION
In an attempt to tighten the reins on underage
drinking, the Arkansas General Assembly recently passed
Act 1152, which amended Arkansas's law regarding minors
in possession of alcohol.' Prior to Act 1152, minors could
not be charged with being in possession of alcohol based on
the presence of alcohol in the body alone.2 In fact,
Arkansas caselaw suggests that officers not only had to
hunt for evidence surrounding the minor but also had to
prove that such evidence was in the immediate control of
the minor. Nonetheless, after a number of failed attempts,
the Arkansas General Assembly finally adopted what some
may call a strict no-tolerance position.4 Section 3-3-203(a)
of the Arkansas Code (hereinafter the minor-in-possession
statute) now reads as follows:
It is unlawful for any person under twenty-one (21)
years of age to purchase or have in his or her
possession any intoxicating liquor, wine, or beer. For
the purposes of this section, intoxicating liquor, wine,
or beer in the body of a minor is deemed to be in his or
her possession.'
*The author of this note would like to thank Professor Carlton Bailey of the
University of Arkansas School of Law in Fayetteville, Arkansas, for his relentless
guidance and support in the furtherance of this note. The author would also like to
thank her Note and Comment Editor, Wade McDougal, for his motivation and
direction. Last, but certainly not least, the author would like to thank her family for
their unfading inspiration.
1. Act 1152, 2011 Ark. Acts 5381, 5382 (codified at ARK. CODE ANN. § 3-3-
203(a) (Supp. 2011)).
2. Kastl v. State, 303 Ark. 358, 360, 796 S.W.2d 848, 849 (1990) ([T]he statute
is clear that alcohol in the body of a minor shall not be deemed to be in his or her
possession.).
3. See infra Part II.B.
4. Act 1152, 2011 Ark. Acts 5381, 5382 (codified at ARK. CODE ANN. § 3-3-
203(a) (Supp. 2011)).
5. ARK. CODE ANN. § 3-3-203(a) (Supp. 2011).
977](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/arklr65&div=42&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
What Is HeinOnline?
Contact us for annual subscription options:
Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?
profiles profiles most
Minors, You Are What You Drink: Arkansas's New Spin on Minors in Possession of Alcohol
Contact us for annual subscription options:
Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?
profiles profiles most