Fort Lauderdale Police Cracking Down on Beach Booze This Memorial Day

If you're planning on spending Memorial Day on Fort Lauderdale Beach with a six pack of beer and a good book, you'd best think again, buckaroo, because the Fort Lauderdale Poilce Department are going to be be out in full force to make sure the coastline stays alcohol-free. See also:...

By Laine Doss

May 26, 2014

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If you're planning on spending Memorial Day on Fort Lauderdale Beach with a six pack of beer and a good book, you'd best think again, buckaroo, because the Fort Lauderdale Poilce Department are going to be be out in full force to make sure the coastline stays alcohol-free.

The police issued a press release stating that they want to "ensure a safe and enjoyable Memorial Day weekend". How will they do that? By making sure no one drinks beer on the beach.

According to the release, Fort Lauderdale will be a "zero tolerance" zone when it comes to "disturbances, physical altercations, and alcohol.

According to police, possession of an open alcoholic beverage on the beach and leaving a licensed establishment with an open alcoholic beverage are strictly prohibited. In plain-speak, that means that you can't take that pina colada with you.

In addition, possessing an open container of alcohol within a public place which is not an enclosed structure is a no-no and you can't consume alcohol in an establishment for off-premise consumption only (so don't crack open that beer at the convenience store).

And, do we really have to remind you not to give alcohol to a person under 21 (or if you're under 21 you can't drink)? That also goes for fake ID's (which fool no one, anyway).

Still think a Bud Light is worth all the trouble? We should warn you that violations "may result in a physical arrest or the issuance of a Notice-to-Appear before a judge". Being thrown in the slammer is the surest way we know to ruin a good beach day.

Oh, and even if you're partying down in a legal bar with a liquor license, don't drink and drive because the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, in conjunction with BSO's DUI Task Force will be "saturating the main corridors to and from the barrier island throughout the holiday island."

In short, have fun but play it smart and assign a designated driver.

Follow Laine Doss on Twitter @LaineDoss and Facebook.

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Laine Doss is the food and spirits editor for Miami New Times, covering the restaurant and bar scene in South Florida. She has been featured on Cooking Channel’s Eat Street and Food Network’s Great Food Truck Race. Doss won an Alternative Weekly award for her feature on what it’s like to wait tables. In a previous life, she appeared off-Broadway and shook many a cocktail as a bartender at venues in South Florida and New York City. When she’s not writing, you can find Doss running some marathon then celebrating at the nearest watering hole.

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