Lafayette, IN Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)

Chapter 11.04, Alcoholic Beverages, targets open-container use tied to vehicles on the city's public streets. Section 11.04.030 makes it a violation for a person to knowingly consume an alcoholic beverage or possess a container that has been opened, has a broken seal, or from which some contents have been removed, while in a motor vehicle being operated on a public street within the city, with an exception if the container is possessed solely for transporting or storage, its contents are not consumed in the vehicle, it is not present in the immediate area, and it is otherwise lawfully possessed under state law.

A companion provision, § 11.04.040, separately makes it unlawful for the vehicle's operator or owner to knowingly keep an open container in the vehicle's immediate area, a term § 11.04.010 defines as the passenger compartment, with adjusted boundaries for station wagons, vans and recreational vehicles. Two narrow exemptions apply under § 11.04.020: chauffeured passengers in a contracted, licensed transportation vehicle, and licensed caterers transporting sealed alcohol with no consumption en route. Signs notifying the public of the open-container prohibition are posted at locations the Board of Public Works and Safety designates under § 11.04.050.

The chapter derives from Ordinance 92-42, adopted February 1, 1993, and is enforced by the Lafayette Police Department, with violators prosecuted through Tippecanoe County Court or another court with jurisdiction over traffic infractions.