Adults and Underage Drinking

The Party's Over: San Diego

"Whenever a young person drinks, an adult is involved in some way," says Dana Stevens, Manager of the North Inland Community Prevention Program in Poway, California. "Whether it is a retailer, parent, older sibling, or friend, it is time we hold adults accountable for underage drinking. Underage drinking is an adult problem, as well as a youth problem."

Cities in San Diego County are giving local law enforcement new tools to reduce youth access to alcohol. Poway and San Diego passed ordinances that make it illegal for adults to host parties on their property where three or more minors are present and any of the youth are drinking. Oceanside and La Mesa are also considering "house party" ordinances that close a loophole in California law that meant it was easier to cite teens for possession than penalize the adults who provided the alcohol.

"Before the new ordinance," says Stevens, "criminal penalties required a witness to see the adult provide alcohol to the underage person. Police could only break up a party if it got too loud or if neighbors complained. Now, if police see somebody leaving a party either drinking or intoxicated, and that person appears to be underage, the cops can find out what's going on in the house. If it turns out to be an underage drinking party, the police can cite the parent or other adult at the home."

Penalties under Poway and San Diego's house party ordinances include fines up to $1,000 and up to six months in jail. Adults are not responsible, under the new law, if they are away from home and teens hold a drinking party without their knowledge.

"When our ordinance came up for a vote in Poway," recalls Stevens, "not a single person spoke in opposition." But, she emphasizes, unanimous support for the measure did not materialize spontaneously. According to Stevens, adoption of the new law was the product of three years of grassroots work and consistent leadership from the San Diego Policy Panel on Youth Access to Alcohol.

The need to close the loophole on house parties emerged as the policy panel reduced or eliminated other sources young people had used to acquire alcohol. Before turning to social access, the panel implemented a series of decoy campaigns to identify retailers who were selling to minors or allowing "shoulder tap" purchases.

"We got better at what we were doing," says Stevens. "And we learned from the kids where they were getting alcohol and where they went to consume it." The panel participants also reviewed the reports filed by police when they cited youth for possession of alcohol. They learned that social access is a significant ingredient in underage drinking.

Some parents believe that hosting a drinking party for teens keeps them safe and "off the streets." A tragedy following one such house party helped to build community support for the ordinance. "A few years ago, some teens were drinking at a party hosted by parents," recalls Stevens. "The parents thought that they were being responsible because they took the kids' car keys. But then they went to bed, leaving the keys on the kitchen counter. The young people later drove to a store for cigarettes and got in an accident. One teen was killed, and the driver ended up in jail for several years."

Large family celebrations also allow youth access to alcohol. "The adults aren't worried about kids drinking because they are having a good time and it seems safe to them," says Stevens. "But they don't think about what can happen when the young people inevitably leave the party and either drive or go elsewhere unsupervised."

Not all of the adults hosting underage drinking parties are parents. The new law will also help curb underage drinking in and around college campuses where young teens often attend parties hosted by young adults who provide the alcohol.

Advocates of the house party ordinances are happy to have another tool for reducing underage drinking. They are also encouraged to see evidence that the policymakers who passed the new laws recognize that underage drinking is an adult problem.

"If adults face criminal charges," says San Diego Police Detective Larry Darwent, who chairs the Law Enforcement Task Force on Underage Drinking, "they'll think twice before hosting underage drinking parties."

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