Drinking Too Much Coffee Can Get You Busted in Illinois?

My wife refuses to believe this can be true. Is it possible to drink so much coffee that you're suddenly illegal in Illinois? Surprisingly, the answer appears to be a big fat maybe.

A story has gone viral this week about how drinking too much coffee can get you arrested, but is that true in Illinois? The devil is in the details. The Sun started this when they shared a video from a Texas lawyer explaining that you can be arrested for a DWI if you drink too much coffee. Can you end up in handcuffs in Illinois for this "offense"? Believe it or not, there is precedent.

How can drinking too much coffee in Illinois make you illegal?

Keep in mind that I am shockingly NOT a lawyer, so find a real one if you need legal advice, but the foundation of DWI laws in Illinois involve impairment. Technically, it doesn't matter if it's alcohol, prescription drugs or even coffee if they cause you to have "erratic behavior, jitteriness, anxiety, or loss of focus".

The question is if this is a realistic concern or not. If you're involved in an accident and police determine you were impaired by anything, you could be in legal jeopardy. Do I believe that a police officer will toss handcuffs on you if he sees 3 tumblers full of coffee in your beverage containers? Doubt it.

Every person reacts differently to high intakes of caffeine. My wife can toss down a couple and she believes that makes her behave normally. If I have just one, I'm like Chris Kattan in Corky Romano.