HOno &Ul L. &l%ChfASOA 

County Attorney 

Bow10 CouAty 

Texalsltma, Texas 

&iAiOA No, V-627 

Reg Appllcab llty of tit, 

6664cj t 11 of the 

Penal Code, ~egulrtIA& the COASIl@i~ 

of alcoholic bovep- 

.ageS in SAY public 

place, to the establiShIleA% described, 

Dear SIP: 

YOUP let%eP askiQ fop UL OpiAiOA of %hhis degrPtU6At COAtdAd the fOllOWfA@ 

“Will you please advise 

following facts constitute a 

and If found %o be a private 

Article 666-k(@)(1) would be 

to. 

me whethew the 

ppivate place, 

place p whether 

applicable thepe- 

‘The OWAep and 0pa~a%OP of a foama~ AI%O 

club IA Bow$e County, Texas, vhefefg food aAd 

beverages* lacludirng beep, ape legal17 sold 

aAd dancing pepmit%ed, Aow abmf%s oAl$ %hose 

wL%h a membez?shlp card fop %he year 1948 pold 

in advance, After suoh members ape admi%%ed, 

food and beverages, includdfng beep, ape pichased by such members, as well as dpncilag lodulged LA, however, AO cover charge is made 

under the present plaA, There Is 80 chaAge 

of fame of the bustiesa nor the ovnership 

thepoof r, %‘he place Is si%uated ou%slde the 

CftJ lititS' Ofn&Al Ci%y OP tOWA fA BOW&S 

County, Texas. 

Apticle 666~4(@3(1], bPnOA*S PeAal Cod., I)POsides 9s followss 

“1% shall be u~~%awful fo%O any person to 

co~aume eny alooholic beverages in aAy public place, 0~ fop any person to passers aAy . 

. 
fiOA. BUA L. &tahiAson, page 2 (V-627) 

alcoholic beverages in any public #see fop 

the puzlpOSe Of cOASURl%Ag the same in suOh 

publla place* at aAy,time on Sunday between 

the hours of ln15 adsi .aAd 1~00 polo, and 0x8 

all other days at any time Petwsbn the hours 

of 12:15 kern. Andy 7800 a,.m. 

It&s provided in Section 10 of k&et. 667, 

Vernonls Penal Code, th#.: 

“(a) It shall be'anlawfUl for atiy pepSOA to sell beer OP. offei Same fOP Sale8 

"(1) OA Sunday at a~ tine between the 

houFs.l*OO o'oloc3k (Lem. and ISa, o'clock P.m. 

SOtStiOA 10 of h'tlole 667 &plies to all 

places, publlo,oP prfvate, go person shall sell beer 

or offer same for sire OA Sundat at any time between the 

hears-of llO0 a.m. and 1~00 p.m. or on any day exoept 

Sun&$ at any tlaa pclor.to 7800 o'clock a,& If beer 

is belAg sold or Off@zNM% for sale iA the place EieAtiOAed In ywa~ opinion r,gu.st dwlna the hours set out in 

the statute, there 18 okearly a iTiolatioA of law, 

There Is a8 

"publae place' 

eneral 

nor,ir f hepe a 

place .in oonnectlon with the 

statute defining the term 

statute defining ,"pabllc 

COAtl'Ol Act. 

snfoqrm~t of theJ&&mr 

wh6ther a plame Is a public )laoe w&en 

not deslgAated as auoh by statute la a question of hot 

OF 8- mixed queat.ioB of 18W.aAd fact fOP then determiaation 

of a jury under p?epeti instruotlone from the.oou~t. hr- 

;t'v. State, 26 TeSh 207; denubrg v. State, 1$6 S.Y, 

Then definitiolw of the t&m' publie plaos in the 

Pe&l Code'are limited to the 

r 

ticol&r offease or off0ASOS to which,%key Nlateo ovevor, It la reasonable 

to assume that the, ta~rltbin the defltitloas,~ as. 

set out in Artiolrr Snd 475 of~the PeML Cod., " 

,ape the ores that the Legislature Intended shou&d be l pplied In the determfnati(ln of the que@ioa of whether 

a partLculer 

of the Penal 8 

lace~ls a public place o &%iole 454(b) 

odr &mev~&@r, ip p Br t, lI rol&WBt 

"Any public place b ., O is e * O any 

place~at which people are assembled OP to 

whioh people oonmonly PoaoPt for tha puri” 
Eon. Bun L. Hutchinson, page 3 (V-627) 

pose Of bUSiAsS8, a$usemeAt OP otheP lbwful pUPposes, @ 0 D 

If, es a matteP of fast, the place hePe being considered 

aasn be bPough% within the tePms of &tlcle 45$b), we 

am of the O~IA~OA that it Is a ?public place e 

we bPb AOt giVRA aAy fbCtSt$at~WOtid indicate 

that the place Is not a public plrce 0 We ape of the 

oplnion~that the feet that only persons vith a .membership card ape edncltted Into the place is pot decislvesi. 

IA holding that a paPtloulrP place we8 6 ipublic houre 

thder OUP gaming laws, it was said in Lockhart v, State, 

10 Texas 275, that: 

n to SUStbiA the Charge iA the iAdlctme&Oii vas not AecessaPy to pPovb, on 

the paPt of the State, that evePg pePSOA who 

deslPed.had access to the POOUIS proof that 

aziy given AumbeP of persoss ~8~0 pePmi%ted 

habltu.ally to play thePe would be sUfflcient,* 

It Is OUP O~IA~OA that the sew rule wotild rpply IA the 

present instance, If the place hePe nndeP COASidePatiOA 

Is es a matter of fact a public platie, it remains such 

a place PegaPdless of the method used IA allowing patrons 

to oome IAtO the place. CleaPly, a club which Is not 6 

bona fide oPgaAlza%fon but Is a subtepfuge OP device to 

evade the law will fuPAish A0 pPOteCtiOA to OAy pePSOA. 

1% Is a vlolatloA~oP lav Section 10 

APtlcle 667 of the Peaal Code for kny pepSOA,,fA 6Ay pla@ep public OP pPiVate, to 

sell beep OP offeP sbme for sale8 OA Sunday 

at 64 time betweerr. %he ho$lPs of 1300 aOmO 

md 1:OO p.m. OP on rAy day except SUA~~Y 

at any time p~for to 7200 onclock a+. 

WhetheP.%he place $escPlbed in ;he 

letter of iAqUiPy is 6 public lace with- 

+r.;he seanleg of Article 666ds)61), Ve 

D 0s Is a question of fact OP 6 mixed 
Hon. Bun L. ~AtchiASoA, page 4 (v-627) " 

- . 

auestlon of law 8Ad fact 

nilnation of a jury under 

tlons from the couFt. 

for the deterpPoper lnstrucYours very tPu1y, 

ATTORHEXGE?IERALOFTI3XAS