Portsmouth, VA Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)

Section 24-253(a) prohibits any person who is standing, lying or sitting in a public park, playground or public street in the city from possessing an open container whose contents include an alcoholic beverage; a violation is a class 4 misdemeanor. The offense turns on possession of an open container in one of those three location types while the person is stationary in one of the listed postures, not on active drinking, so a person merely holding an uncapped beer while sitting on a park bench is already in violation.

Subsection (b) carves out an exception for public areas the city has designated where possession and consumption of alcoholic beverages has been authorized by the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, which lets the city permit drinking at approved festivals, outdoor dining districts or similar sanctioned events without running afoul of the general ban. 1-308, which lets localities regulate possession or consumption of alcoholic beverages in public. A conviction carries the same class 4 misdemeanor penalty as Portsmouth's other lowest-tier offenses: a fine of up to $250 under section 1-11(a)(4), with no jail exposure, and section 1-11(c) still caps the local penalty at whatever state law prescribes for a comparable offense.