Under Texas law, peace officers can process intoxicated persons in at least three different ways. Two of those ways essentially involve releasing the intoxicated person to another's custody without the filing of criminal charges

Question

This indicates a general public policy of protection not punishment for intoxicated persons. Should Texas completely decriminalize the offense of public intoxication? Are there any circumstances in which a publicly intoxicated individual should answer to criminal charges?

Answer 1

• The statutory authority to take intoxicated persons into protective custody constitutes an unnecessary infringement on an individual's right to be left alone.
• Decriminalization of public intoxication might well increase the frequency of public consumption of alcohol and other intoxicants. This may not be socially desirable.
• Even if the criminal penalty for public intoxication were abolished, peace officers would still need the power to take intoxicated persons into protective custody when an actual danger to themselves or others is likely.
• Without a statute in the Penal Code, officers might view dealing with intoxicated persons as not real police work. Accordingly, police officers might become more likely to simply ignore intoxicated individuals rather than provide them assistance.
• Similarly, officers would need to be able to arrest individuals who while intoxicated are disorderly or who otherwise actually disturb the public peace.
• The linkage between public intoxication and driving while intoxicated is unclear. Any change in the public intoxication law should include review of the impact of the change on driving while intoxicated (DWI). Actual danger to the public posed by DWI offenders is greater than danger posed by publicly intoxicated persons. Perhaps better strategies other than the criminal law exist to reduce incidents of DWI and corresponding incidents of intoxication assault and intoxication manslaughter.
• Many smaller communities lack alcohol or drug rehabilitation centers where intoxicated persons could be placed. Decriminalization would require expansion of the number of these facilities.