Teen Drinking and Parents

[GoodGame]

Realistically, you shouldn't have underage house parties. They're a PITA to manage, and the adults opened themselves up to the consequences. You have 2 people trying to supervise 40 people who don't want to be supervised. Practical? NO.

Realistically, the cops have to detain everyone at the scene for questioning (did anyone drink? who supplied the alcohol? did anything else happen (rape, sodomy, etc...)? ) and probably breathlyze anyone obviously under the influence. An even worse case is if someone left the party drunk in a car with a bunch of friends in tow and had a serious accident, DUI linked in one way or another to the house party. It could have been worse, really.

A night in jail is better than losing one's house to civil awards related to a DUI injury/fatality stemming from one's house party. Maybe the arrest wasn't warranted if there wasn't evidence of intent to distribute?


What's so wrong with noise ordinance laws?

 

[Aleksey_aka_al]

That is why liberalism is the most serious of evils: society is so concerned with individual life and freedoms that there's no individual life at all.

 

[JollyRoger]

Blame the lawyers, not the Police. There was a time they would have let it go. But now that there are 1,000 ambulance chasing scumbags out their suing everyone, the Police are going to protect their own ass.

Police pretty much have immunity for deciding not to make an arrest here. Some of the actions described though could open them up to lawsuit by a bright and enterprising lawyer.

 

[Cutlass]

That is why liberalism is the most serious of evils: society is so concerned with individual life and freedoms that there's no individual life at all.

It's conservatives that crack down on all the fun.

 

[MobBoss]

If the parents did not supply, or in any way contribute to the presence of, alcohol, then they are not responsible for what the kids snuck past them.

Its their house, their property...of course they are responsible.

As a parent, I realize this and keep our kids house parties down to a manageable size with some specific rules in place. It's my house, and its my responsibility to ensure what happens at my house doesnt disturb my neighbors, or cause me issues with local law enforcement.

 

[Virote_Considon]

Ahahahahahahahahahahahaha! You Americans with your Puritanical ways are so crazy!

It's conservatives that crack down on all the fun.

In the context of Aleksey's post, there is no difference between a liberal of a liberalist society and a conservative of a liberalist society. Plz stop trying to pretend that the world and its vast array of ideological differences can be divided into the two American nuances of "conservatism" and "liberalism".

 

[classical_hero]

This is what happens in, what, every single white suburban neighborhood in the nation? Being a young teenager and sneaking alcohol past your parents, or going over to "that parent's house" where you knew you could get away with stuff is as American as apple pie. It's an issue for parents in a community to work out amongst themselves, or maybe even the local school, but not an issue for the police unless someone gets hurt, IMHO. Whoever called the cops rather than going to the house and asking them to be quiet needs to go on the neighborhood black list.

So you are saying it is okay to break the law if other's are doing it. That is a great moral to this story.

 

[Camikaze]

I'm surprised this is actually something people can get arrested over. Here you might be liable for a $550 fine for each minor (so $24 200), but potential jail time is absurd (as are the drinking laws that prevent a voter from drinking). Why should parents be responsible for what an 18 year old does?

This is definitely not a case of USA #1.

 

[Grisu]

Those drinking laws seem horribly messed up if you ask me...and even with those laws the cops seem to have ridiculously overreacted.

 

[azzaman333]

Wow, I'd forgotten just how ******** American laws for drinking are. Thanks for reminding me.

 

[civver_764]

There should be no legal penalties for drinking period(or other drugs). You can argue that younger kids shouldn't drink but any involvement of the police is completely insane.

 

[Hygro]

Blame the lawyers, not the Police. There was a time they would have let it go. But now that there are 1,000 ambulance chasing scumbags out their suing everyone, the Police are going to protect their own ass.

Did you know that the federal government is controlled by Lizard People and putting citizens into FEMA concentration camps?

 

[kochman]

Curfew, drinking age...
Why do Americans hate freedom ?

Funny you say that...
Whenever I have lived in Europe (Germany & Italy, plus extensive traveling), I have always felt freer... as in, that the police didn't ever really bother me... they didn't interfere.
However, a difference is, if the police in Europe do target you, you have less rights (generally speaking).

So, if you mind your own business and do even moderately the right thing in Europe, you are generally fine.

Interesting difference.

 

[illram]

So you are saying it is okay to break the law if other's are doing it. That is a great moral to this story.

Not at all. In this case the laws non-application or the application of some other force such as community pressure would better alleviate the issue than questionably using some law to unnecessarily put these folks into an already dysfunctional criminal justice system that won't do anything to solve whatever problem there was in the first place. The police are not the solution to every problem even if there is some law that can be tangentially related to the problem.

 

[JollyRoger]

Its their house, their property...of course they are responsible.

As a parent, I realize this and keep our kids house parties down to a manageable size with some specific rules in place. It's my house, and its my responsibility to ensure what happens at my house doesnt disturb my neighbors, or cause me issues with local law enforcement.

Sure responsible, but not criminally responsible if you can't prove intent beyond a reasonable doubt.

 

[warpus]

(did anyone drink? who supplied the alcohol? did anything else happen (rape, sodomy, etc...)? )

Sodomy?????

 

[dutchfire]

Yeah, didn't you know, alcohol is just a gateway drug towards the real bad stuff.

 

[Aleksey_aka_al]

Yeah, didn't you know, alcohol is just a gateway drug towards the real bad stuff.

As much as drinking, eating or living itself is.

So people should not live, especially with parties, cause someday they could use drugs!

 

[dutchfire]

I should've put a sarcasm sign there, I guess. American drinking laws are completely silly.

 

[warpus]

I should've put a sarcasm sign there, I guess. American drinking laws are completely silly.

They might as well have eating laws..