jurisdictions. public intoxication laws vary widely by jurisdiction, but include public nuisance laws, open-container laws, and prohibitions on drinking alcohol in public or certain areas. the offenders are often lower class individuals and this crime has a very high recidivism rate, with numerous instances of repeated instances of the arrest, jail, release without treatment cycle. the high number of arrests for public drunkenness often reflects rearrests of the same offenders. methanol-adulterated alcohol main article: methanol poisoning outbreaks outbreaks of methanol poisoning have occurred when methanol is used to adulterate moonshine (bootleg liquor). methanol has a high toxicity in humans. if as little as 10 ml of pure methanol is ingested, for example, it can break down into formic acid, which can cause permanent blindness by destruction of the optic nerve, and 30 ml is potentially fatal, although the median lethal dose is typically 100 ml (3.4 fl oz) (i.e. 1–2 ml/kg body weight of pure methanol). reference dose for methanol is 0.5 mg/kg/day. toxic effects take hours to start, and effective antidotes can often prevent permanent damage. because of its similarities in both appearance and odor to ethanol (the alcohol in beverages), it is difficult to differentiate between the two. health effects main articles: alcohol and health and alcoholism § moderate drinking