The Santa Fe City Council’s Public Safety Committee on Tuesday greenlighted an effort aimed at helping Santa Fe police officers crack down on illegal public alcohol consumption.
Committee members approved an amendment to city law that would prohibit people from possessing an open alcohol container in an unlicensed public space.
It’s already unlawful to drink alcohol in such an area, but police say it can be difficult to take action if they don’t actually see someone drinking.
“This is a simple change that I think will give a good tool to our officers,” City Councilor Patti Bushee told the committee.
The proposal is a follow-up to complaints Bushee heard during a series of public meetings on safety at the Santa Fe Railyard.
“I was surprised to hear how difficult it was for folks” to do something about people drinking illegally at the Railyard, said Bushee, who is sponsoring the ordinance.
Assistant City Attorney Alfred Walker said he often dealt with public alcohol consumption citations during his years as a prosecutor in Municipal Court.
“If the officer couldn’t say, ‘I saw it go to his lips,’ it was difficult to deal with that situation,” Walker said.
He added, “I think it will improve the prosecution in these kinds of cases.”
Police Chief Ray Rael agreed that the ordinance will provide police with an additional tool in addressing “some of these problem people” who purchase and bring alcohol into the Santa Fe Railyard and other parks.
The Public Works Committee unanimously approved the measure. There was little discussion, though some members expressed concerns that the ordinance might infringe on alcohol consumption in licensed public places – such as at Fort Marcy Park, where beer sales are planned for minor league baseball games starting next summer – or could raise the prospect of improper searches or seizures.
They were assured by Rael and others that those issues would not be a problem.
The proposal next goes before the city’s Finance Committee on Jan. 3. The City Council, which has the final say, will vote on the measure Feb. 8.
Bushee said she’s also considering ways to eliminate or lessen the use of miniature liquor bottles in public areas.
She said she’ll likely use a strategy that deals with the bottles “more (from) a nuisance side of things,” such as enforcement of anti-littering measures.
Reprint story -- Email the reporter at khay@abqjournal.com. Call the reporter at 505-992-6290
