Newport News, VA Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)

If any person takes a drink of an alcoholic beverage or offers a drink thereof to another, whether accepted or not, at or in any public place, he shall be guilty of a Class 4 misdemeanor.(b)This section shall not prevent any person from drinking alcoholic beverages or offering a drink thereof to another in any rooms or areas approved by the commonwealth in a licensed establishment, provided such establishment or the person who operates the same is licensed to sell alcoholic beverages at retail for on-premises consumption and the alcoholic beverages drunk or offered were purchased therein.(c)This section shall not prevent any person from drinking alcoholic beverages or offering a drink thereof to another in any room or area approved by the commonwealth at an event for which a banquet license or mixed beverage special events license has been granted. Nor shall this section prevent, upon authorization of the licensee, any person from drinking his own lawfully acquired alcoholic beverages or offering a drink thereof to another in approved areas and locations at events for which a coliseum or stadium license has been granted.(d)This section shall not prevent any person from drinking alcoholic beverages or offering a drink thereof to another on a chartered boat being used for the transportation of passengers for compensation which is not licensed by the commonwealth and which does not sell alcoholic beverages. (Ord. No. 5870-03)