"The bottom line is you can't provide alcohol to minors, period," says Bernadette Compean, an alcohol beverage control officer with the Ventura Police Department.Necessary evil or more nanny state run amuck?
Public health researcher M.J. Paschall, also with the Prevention Research Center, recently did a study comparing cities in California that had social host laws with cities that did not.
"We found that cities with more stringent and enforceable social host laws had lower levels of drinking at parties among teenagers compared to cities with less stringent laws, or without any kind of social host law," Paschall says.
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
"To Stop Teen Drinking Parties, Fine The Parents"
"Many parents felt drinking was inevitable, she says. One mother told Friese, "I'd rather they make their mistakes when they're at home than when they're away."
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I think that if this is so, then colleges should also likewise be fined. Be consistent. That's why there's an attitude of making mistakes at home rather than away. Because there's all sorts of allowances for "away".
The wink, wink approach to drinking is absurd. Enforce the law across the board, making the alcohol drenched centers of universities likewise liable (since they already see themselves as nannies in other ways). Or change the drinking law to 18. Ideally both.
The current setup is stupid.
IIRC Michigan has a host liability law with a provision for charging the parents, when children (teenagers usually) are involved with drinking in the home, at a party, regardless of whether the parents are home or not, let alone fining them.
I have no problem with this arrangement. If I am in error, somebody please correct me, with an explanation.
This is my personal and professional experience. On a personal level, the parents of my 2 kids friends who sponsored parties were the parents who wanted to be cool. They tried to be responsible, taking keys from kids. But, these parents were not savvy. I am savvy enough but did not ever sponsor a party for 2 reasons. Firstly, the message is wrong. I knew my kids drank and blew weed. I had a no driving impaired rule and no riding w/ someone impaired. My wise old man had a rule w/ his 4 kids. Call me ANYTIME and I'll pick you up, no questions asked. My kids had the same offer. They both took me up on it several times. Now, I drove over the limit. But, I never drove shitfaced.
Professionally, I worked several cases involving bad accidents involving kids leaving these "supervised" parties. I was hired by the attorneys representing the parent's homeowners insurance. They tried to take keys but like I said, they were in over their heads. In one that I remember distinctly, a mother of 3, RN, returning from working the 2nd shift, was killed. Having to defend the parents of that party, was TOUGH!
Wi. has no dram shop law. Dram shop laws go back to old English law where an innkeeper is responsible for serving liquor to a patron. In Wi., the ONLY way you can sue a tavern for over serving a patron is if that patron was an illegal minor. Otherwise, taverns have NO liability. That's fucked up, and one of the reasons Wi. has almost more taverns than cows.
Good idea.
To stop armed robbery, kill both of the adults responsible for that child to be born who robs anyone while armed with a weapon.
Ari,
Since you asked, section 6 in the right hand column of the Michigan summary indicates that lack of knowledge is a defense.
Otherwise 30 days and $1000.
Works for me.
The thing that does not compute is the parent saying the kids are going to drink so host a party at home.
Why a party?
You can teach your kids to drink responsibly, ignore the ridiculous law, and supervise your kid's drinking directly without there being a party. Or perhaps sips here and there during adult gatherings.
I knoweth whereof I speaketh.
I'm convinced this is how I was put off whiskey permanently.
The thought makes me gag.
Wine too, but to be fair, it was the worst wine imaginable. Where my parents ever got the idea of a shot glass of Mogen David on Friday is beyond me. Five little aperitif glasses around the table. They said, "It's good for your blood." ORLY? Why? Because it is dark red? I couldn't take it so I gave mine to my brother when my parents weren't looking. The guy was thin as a rail and got delightfully toasted.
Dad said repeatedly taking a sip of whiskey will put hair on my chest. LIes! All Lies!
I keep trying to overcome this handicap and keep failing.
I have a fully stocked bar. Beyond fully stocked. But all that is for other people.
I did have a Cuba Libre at the Ship Tavern, and it was perfect. I tried to duplicate it home and failed. Again. So that's another whole bottle of rum just sitting there for somebody else.
Moral of anecdote: Do introduce your children to alcohol early like normal people do at home all across the globe save for the inhibited cultures, and that corrects the overcompensation of teen binging caused by ridiculous laws.
Never fear, Chip.
In Colorado you can play beer pong with the kids as long as you're at home.
5) It is an affirmative defense to the offense described in paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of this section that the ethyl alcohol was possessed or consumed by a person under twenty-one years of age under the following circumstances:
(a) While such person was legally upon private property with the knowledge and consent of the owner or legal possessor of such private property and the ethyl alcohol was possessed or consumed with the consent of his or her parent or legal guardian who was present during such possession or consumption
Or drunken Twister at the neighbors as long as Mom or Dad goes along.
So if we fine employers who hire illegals...
Nevermind, that would be raaaaacist or something!
That mother who says she'd rather her kids make mistakes at home...what's she going to do, take away the bottle after the second drink?...the third?...the fifth?...you know she's not, because then she wouldn't be a pal.
Good point EBL... I'm stealing that for a tweet... tag you back.
I don't understand the problem. Didn't everyone's dad set them up with their own tab at the country club?
Cousin, sheriff's deputy, broke up an underage party and hauled a bunch of kids in. Oops! One was the daughter of a judge. Cousin was on jail duty for a year.
Rabel ... vis a vis "lack of knowledge" defense...Aw CRAP. And SAD.
Lack of knowledge is nonsense...just the stink when you walk in tells you what you need to know. It's not like it only happens once.
If parents are hosting a drinking party for their children and *serving other people's children alcohol* then as long as there are laws about drinking age... who can buy a beer legally and who can't... then the fact that you're parents and not a bar owner is sort of irrelevant.
Frat party? They're serving alcohol.
If someone is hauling parents in because they let their teen have wine with Christmas dinner... that's different, and wrong.
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