Rhode Island § 3-8-9 - Regulation of Sales

§ 3-8-9. Transportation of alcoholic beverages by underage persons.

(a) Any person who has not reached his or her twenty-first (21st) birthday and who operates a motor vehicle upon the public highways, except when accompanied by a parent, legal guardian, or another adult who is over the age of twenty-one (21) years and related, whether by blood, adoption or marriage, to the operator within the following degree of sanguinity: brother, sister, grandfather, grandmother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepfather, stepmother, stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, half-sister, uncle, aunt, great uncle or great aunt and, knowingly having liquor or intoxicating beverages in any form in containers, opened or unopened, in any part of the vehicle shall be guilty of a criminal violation. The words liquor and intoxicating beverages, as used in this section, have the same meaning as defined in chapter 1 of this title. This section does not apply to persons between the ages of sixteen (16) and twenty-one (21) who are transporting unopened alcoholic beverages in the course of their employment.

(b) Any person who violates subsection (a) of this section shall be subject to the following:

(1) For a first offense, a fine of not more than two hundred fifty dollars ($250) and have his or her license to operate a motor vehicle suspended for not more than thirty (30) days;

(2) For a second offense, a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500) and have his or her license to operate a motor vehicle suspended for not more than ninety (90) days;

(3) For a third or subsequent offense, a fine of no less than five hundred dollars ($500) nor more than nine hundred and fifty dollars ($950) and have his or her license to operate a motor vehicle suspended for one year.