Dwinell: Alcohol laws are sobering messages
By Joe Dwinell

Monday, February 9, 2004

What I like the most about this business is you learn something new every day. For instance, did you know you can be tossed in jail for a year and fined up to $2,000 for allowing teenagers to drink alcohol in your house?

It's called the "Social Host Responsibility Law" and it was enacted four years ago. It is rarely used, but it's on the books. Come prom season, you can bet prosecutors will be looking for a reason to dust it off.

That's just what happened a week ago to a Scituate teen. The young man, 18-year-old Michael McInnis, was accused of hosting a party in August where some of his friends were drinking and driving. Two of the partygoers -- Jenell Desmond, 16, and Kristine Carriere, 15, both of Weymouth -- died in a car crash in Norwell after they left the party. This end-of-the-summer nightmare reared its head anew when a judge ordered McInnis to serve 50 hours of community service under the social host law. Other charges relating to the party were continued without a finding.

The author of the bill said everyone -- especially parents -- should memorize this law. "It amazes me anyone would make an argument that they are unaware of this law," said state Rep. Frank Hynes, D-Marshfield, who penned the legislation and doesn't have much patience when it comes to underage drinking. "All of us have to teach that drinking and driving don't mix," said Hynes. "I'd like to see people recognize that if you drink and drive there are going to be consequences."  About 17,000 people die in drinking-related accidents every year, he said, quoting statistics from Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). He said all the "consternation" over the loss of a young teen doesn't last long enough. The law needs to step in and defend the victims. It's heartbreaking and devastating, he said, so why risk it at all?

Hynes said he has a new bill making its way through the Legislature that would force a convicted drunken driver to pay for medical bills and property lost (read: car crashed) for any victim. Anything, he added, to take back the roads from drunken drivers. "The poor victim has no renumeration in most cases," he said. Translation: Not only are crash victims left in shock, they must pay all the bills or hassle with insurance companies because someone else was having a good ol' time at the bar. Hynes is out to flip that equation and stick the target on the accused.

In case you are wondering, there are other ways police can charge a parent or host of a party for allowing underage drinking: Under a law first recorded in 1800, a tenant or homeowner can be charged with operating a disorderly house. If you have a rowdy party where laws are being broken, you can be held accountable. Police can take it a step further and charge a host with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, serving alcohol to a minor and mayhem. You can also be dragged into civil court where parents of a teenager can ruin your financial future just for allowing kids to drink.

All this from an obscure bill. In the newsroom, we always dread the spring because with it comes the stories of high school graduates who perish in car crashes. The sorrow is so thick it makes everyone associated with the story sick. You run the yearbook photo and read about the victims' dreams and hobbies, best friends and heroics on the playing fields and in the classroom. Too bad somebody didn't take a look downstairs to make sure nobody was drinking and driving.

A fee for this, a fee for that

While skimming through some of the 87 weekly papers our chain publishes (yes, we're more than just a daily newspaper), the topic of sports fees made the front page in Melrose. It seems that town's hefty $275-per-sport fee is keeping students -- especially freshmen -- away from after-school sports. Melrose school officials report fewer freshmen are signing up for some sports while other athletes are dropping "off-season" sports.

It appears that the fee is high enough that some students remain with their favorite sport and skip others. As for the freshmen, there is no ready explanation. Maybe they are waiting to see which sport they would like to tackle.
A school committee member once asked is there a ceiling on sports fees? It appears $275 is a good guess.
That's a hefty sum to ask a parent to pay and Melrose has no family maximum. How do parents with two or more children in high school cope?  File this under local aid cuts bringing the pain home.


 

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