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Loitering for Alcohol Purchase Solicitation in Los Angeles: What You Need to Know
Los Angeles is a city where many adults enjoy alcoholic beverages at bars, restaurants, and events. However, it is not acceptable to ask others to buy alcohol for you. This action can lead to legal trouble and criminal charges. Section 303 of the California Penal Code makes it a crime to loiter in or around an establishment serving alcohol while soliciting the purchase of alcoholic beverages.
Defining the Offense
Under Section 303 of the California Penal Code, individuals can be charged with a criminal offense if they loiter in, around, or near a place that serves alcohol and ask patrons or others to buy them drinks. This law may not be widely known, but it is occasionally utilized in Los Angeles. Anyone engaging in such activity near a bar or restaurant risks an arrest and criminal charges.
Examples of the Offense
Consider Joe, who recently lost his job, and wants to have a drink. Since he does not have enough money, he waits outside his preferred establishment and accosts everyone entering or leaving. Joe requests that they buy him a drink and continues to do so for several hours before being discovered by the bar staff and the police. Joe can be arrested and charged with soliciting the purchase of alcohol by loitering.
Alternatively, consider Ryan, who is having drinks with his friends at his favorite restaurant. His friends head out for the night, but Ryan is not done partying. Unfortunately, the bartender has cut him off for drinking too much. Ryan continues to linger around the restaurant and asks guests at the tables around him to buy him drinks. They all refuse and alert the management. Later, Ryan may be arrested and charged with a criminal offense.
In both examples, Joe and Ryan’s reasons for hanging about are questionable. Either they could not afford to purchase drinks or they had too much to drink, so they had no valid reason for being there.
Legal Consequences
Loitering to solicit the purchase of alcohol in Los Angeles is a misdemeanor criminal offense, which can result in:
A county jail sentence of six months
Fines worth up to $1,000
Probation and community service
Legal Defense
When charged with loitering to solicit the purchase of alcohol, a conviction can lead to jail time, criminal records, and diminished employment opportunities. However, it is possible to fight these charges with sound legal representation. For instance, we can use a strong defense by stating:
You had a valid reason to be in the establishment and were not loitering.
You were not requesting drinks from other patrons.
You did request drinks, but you were not loitering for that reason.
Table
| Section 303 of the California Penal Code | It is a criminal offense to loiter in and around an establishment serving alcohol while soliciting the purchase of alcoholic beverages. |
| Joe | Joe, who cannot afford a drink of his own, waits outside a bar and requests that any patron purchases alcohol for him. |
| Ryan | Ryan, who has consumed too much alcohol, lingers at a restaurant after his friends leave and requests that diners at nearby tables buy him more drinks. |
| Misdemeanor criminal offense | A county jail sentence of six months | Fines worth up to $1,000 | Probation and community service |
| Valid reason for being on the establishment | Not soliciting drinks from others | Loitering not intended for soliciting drinks |
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