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24
March 2000
Burning Question After Deadly Mira Mesa Car
Crash:
How Do Teen Drinkers Access the Booze?
SAN DIEGO, CA
– It's a deadly question asked too little and too late. How do underage
drinkers get access to alcohol? Communities Against Substance Abuse
urges the public to, once again, demand an answer after Friday morning's
deadly crash which claimed the lives of three young men and injured another
in Mira Mesa.
"Underage drinkers have to get their alcohol from somewhere and that source
must be held accountable," says Mary Harrison, Executive Director of Communities
Against Substance Abuse. "This tragedy should serve as a wake up call
to adults: Know the laws when it comes to providing alcohol to minors,"
says Harrison.
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Furnishing
Alcohol: A person who sells, gives or furnishes an alcoholic beverage
to an underage person can receive a minimum $250 fine and 24 to 36
hours of community service. Section 25658(a). |
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No
License to Sell: A person who sells, gives or furnishes an alcoholic
beverage without a license (for example, at a "kegger party" where
admission is charged and the alcoholic beverages are included) can
receive a minimum $1,000 fine and/or six months in county jail. Section
23300. |
San Diego County
teenagers see the need to step up community support for enforcement of laws
that punish adult providers. Sara Rapp, a senior at Granite Hills High
School, says she's tired of seeing her peers die from drinking and driving.
"We've got to start making adults accountable if we want to avoid another
fatal crash like the one in Mira Mesa," says Rapp.
"Parents who let kids drink need to stop," says Matt Ellis, student at West
Hills High School. "Adults are not doing teenagers a favor by letting
them drink," says Ellis.
"It's sad we have to lose so many young people for people to realize the
problem," says Chenin Bridgeman, a student at El Cajon Valley High School.
Bridgeman says this is also an opportunity for parents to remind their teens
about the repercussions of drinking and driving. "Kids are listening, they
really are. The more you talk to them the more they listen. Talk, they'll
listen."
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Zero
Tolerance: Any person under the age of 21 driving a motor vehicle
with any measurable amount of alcohol (0.01 percent or above) in his
or her system will have his or her licensee suspended on the spot
under the new "Zero Tolerance" law. Section 23136, Art. 1.3. |
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Purchase:
Any underage individual who purchases or consumes an alcoholic beverage
can receive a minimum $250 fine and 24 to 32 hours of required community
service. Section 25658(b). |
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Possession:
Any underage individual who possesses an alcoholic beverage in a public
place or a place open to the public can receive a maximum $1,000 fine
and/or six months in county jail. Section 25662. |
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Attempt
to Purchase: Any underage person who even attempts to purchase
an alcoholic beverage can receive a maximum $100 fine. A second offense
can result in a maximum $250 fine and/or 36 hours of community service.
Section 25658.5. |
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Under
the Influence: A person between the ages of 13 and 21 years old
who is convicted of certain alcohol or drug related crimes, including
attempt to purchase, possession of false identification, driving under
the influence, or riding a bike under the influence can receive a
one-year suspension of the person's driving privilege or a one year
delay in receiving a driver's license if the person does not yet drive.
Section 13202.5 Vehicle Code. |
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