You Will No Longer Go to Jail in Manhattan for Drinking in Public

Have you ever fantasized about strolling down Broadway while drinking from a carafe of Wild Irish Rose and peeing on each and every fire hydrant? If so, you might just be having the best day of your alcohol- and urine-soaked life.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. announced today that, as of March 7, drinking and urinating in public on the streets of Manhattan will no longer be cause for arrest (unless the person doing the act is threatening someone else's safety). Now, you can still get a summons for pounding a beer on the street, but drinking (and taking a leak) in public is no longer a jailable crime.

The New York Police Department has been instructed that several low-level offenses—including public consumption of alcohol, public urination, littering, riding between subway cars, or taking up more than one subway seat—will no longer be prosecuted as criminal matters; perpetrators will instead be issued summonses. (Manspreading? No longer a crime.)

Mayor Bill de Blasio is in favor of the change: "Using summonses instead of arrests for low-level offenses is an intuitive and modern solution that will help make sure resources are focused on our main priority: addressing threats to public safety." The move will also release a bit of pressure on New York City's overburdened jails: "This plan will also help safely prevent unnecessary jail time for low-level offenses," said de Blasio. The DA believes the change will result in 10,000 fewer arrests each year.

But does the city of New York really want to scream this information from the rooftops? Apparently not. Only the DA's office announced the change, with no press conference or independent announcement coming from either the Mayor's Office or the NYPD.

The change in policy is applicable only in Manhattan, so don't go drinking or peeing in public in Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, or the Bronx. However, the change in Manhattan may be a harbinger of change in the other boroughs. Back in 2014, Brooklyn's DA said that the borough would no longer prosecute low-level marijuana crimes. The whole city then followed suit, and police throughout the five boroughs now follow the policy of issuing summonses rather than arresting people for possession of small amounts of pot.

The majority of states and localities prohibit open containers of alcohol on the streets; a lot more prohibit them in vehicles. Only a few places—New Orleans and Savannah among them—say open containers are freely allowed, but even those places may limit the size of the container used.

Bodegas of Manhattan, take note: The small brown bag may no longer be in much demand.