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Washington senators are advancing a proposal that would allow older teenagers to taste alcohol in culinary, beer technology, or similar community college classes. If passed, the bill will enable 18-20 year olds to better understand their course work by responsibly (and under supervision) tasting (though they are not supposed to consume) alcohol.

Though the bill’s intent is to enhance the educational experience of these students and better prepare them for their careers, it has the potential to indirectly promote responsibility by removing the mystique surrounding alcohol for under age drinkers.

Choose Responsibility Blog

A spokesperson for the North Carolina Division of Alcohol Law Enforcement says that after the party is over, an alleged underage drinker may not be free from being charged later for an alleged alcohol offense. The ALE special agent made the statement as officials announced charges brought after an alleged Johnston County, North Carolina party last month. A 21-year-old was charged for allegedly buying 60 beers that were given to underage drinkers.

ALE officials say that an 18-year-old high school student was killed in a crash involving a driver who had allegedly attended the party. Police charged the 17-year-old accused of driving a truck that rolled over February 16 with felony death by vehicle, DWI and underage DUI after the wreck.

Thursday, ALE officials announced charges against the 21-year-old and a 16-year-old who is accused of hosting the underage drinking party. Police opened a probe into the party after the car accident, searching for names of other alleged attendees at the party.

Based upon that investigation, ALE agents say that about a dozen people will be facing underage alcohol charges. Some of the teens are also accused of possessing marijuana at the party. The special agent said in announcing the charges that, “Kids should know that even though the police don’t show up at the party they can still be charged.”

Underage drinking charges in North Carolina can bring long-lasting consequences for a person convicted of the charges. For anyone over the age of 16, charges are filed in adult court. Signing a ticket and paying a fine to get it over with, or otherwise simply pleading guilty to a charge, creates a criminal record. For high school kids, that means background checks for future jobs, college, joining the military, or other life events may turn up a criminal record.

Source: The Smithfield Herald, “12 people face alcohol-related charges after wreck that killed a Johnston County teen,” Thomasi McDonald, March 6, 2013

Greenville DUI Attorney Blog | North Carolina Underage Drinking Lawyer | Pitt County First DUI Law Firm

Two young men are facing underage drinking charges after rescuing a sober accident victim from a North Carolina Lake. Deputies claim that the two young men smelled of alcohol when law enforcement looked into the tragic accident.

A 15-year-old North Carolina teen was severely injured in a diving accident on High Rock Lake earlier this month. The teen reportedly dove from a pontoon boat into shallow water. The young man had not been drinking before the tragic accident. The North Carolina teen reportedly broke his neck during the dive into the lake.

A number of other young men are credited with saving the accident victim’s life. A 17-year-old and an 18-year-old acted to save the accident victim from High Rock Lake. The 17-year-old and another young man pulled the accident victim from the water, and the 18-year-old, an Eagle Scout, performed CPR on the accident victim.

The third young man (who had helped pull the accident victim from the water) drove the pontoon. The teens first sought assistance from people on a fishing boat, and then continued on to Tamarac Marina. Emergency crews took over care for the accident victim at the marina.

Deputies conducted interviews in the aftermath of the accident. Law enforcement claims the young men admitted to drinking beer. Breath tests reportedly show that the 17-year-old measured 0.04 percent blood alcohol content, while the 18-year-old reportedly measured 0.11 percent. Authorities accuse two of the heroes of underage drinking.

The accident victim reportedly required surgery to insert pins into his neck. The high school sophomore had been airlifted to Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

Source: Salisbury Post, “Teens who saved friend charged with underage drinking,” Aug. 3, 2012

Greenville DUI Attorney Blog | North Carolina Underage Drinking Lawyer | Pitt County First DUI Law Firm

This weekend’s Parade magazine’s Special Report covered the important topic of teens and extreme drinking. The report introduced the reader to the topic through the story of Rory who called her parents in a drunken panic during her first few weeks of college. Unfortunately, there are countless stories just like this one. Some end up alright while too many others end in tragedy.

For twenty years, The Century Council has encourage parents and their children to talk about underage drinking. In middle school, the focus may be how to resist peer pressure. In high school, conversations often center on drunk driving and how alcohol affects adults differently than young people. And in college, it is important to remind teens that the legal drinking age is twenty-one and to understand the dangerous consequences of binge drinking. Over, and over, and over again, parents should be helping their young people make responsible decisions about alcohol and living up to their role as the leading influence on their child’s decision to drink or not to drink.

Parade’s “What Parents Can Do” column in the Special Report provided some helpful tips for parents. But, if you’re looking for “signs of extreme drinking” it may already be too late. Check out our resources on underage drinking and get resources that will help jumpstart your conversations.

Rory survived her night out. Not everyone does.

Century Council Blog

From The Globe and Mail

“Mom, I really like your blouse. It makes you look pretty. Oh, and I have to show you this coat I saw online. It’s so nice. I just have to get it. And it’s on sale. Please? Maybe it’d look good on you, too. We could be like sisters.”

“Oh, all right. I’ll look. But if it’s too much, we’re not going to get it.”

“Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you. You’re the best mom in the world.”

Teenagers have a maddening propensity for laying on the charm when it suits their purposes, but otherwise are considerably less than cordial.

Century Council Blog

Even though graduated licensing and awareness campaigns exist to alert teens of the dangers of drunk driving and other dangerous behaviors behind the wheel, statistics show that many Florida car accidents involving teens are still highly preventable. In many cases, these accidents are caused by teens who speed, drive distracted, or drive drunk. Even though teens may know that such behaviors are wrong, they sometimes still engage in these behaviors.

Experts believe that lack of driving experience, emotional immaturity, and a belief that dangerous behaviors won’t result in serious consequences ensure that teens still engage in risky and dangerous driving. According to MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) and other advocacy groups, it is important for parents to sit down with their teen drivers to discuss dangerous driving. These discussions should include:

1) Set rules. It is important for parents to set rules with their teens. Rules for teen drivers can include things such as “no drinking and driving,” “no cell phone use of any kind while driving,” and “no more than two passengers at a time” can be good places to start.

2) An explanation of how dangerous reckless driving can be. Even though teens may have heard about the dangers of using a cell phone, drinking and driving, and speeding, they need to hear about these things from their parents, too. Keep in mind that many teens feel “it can’t happen to me,” which is why they go ahead and engage in risky behaviors. As a result, it is important to show how Florida car accidents can happen to them. Show them graphically what can happen in an accident – have them chat with Florida burn injury victims or others who have been injured in an accident. Contact your local MADD chapter and law enforcement – they usually have community liaisons and educational materials you can share with your teens. Strive to make the dangers of car accidents real.

3) Repetition. It’s a message that is worth repeating. The more often your teen drivers hear about the dangers of speeding, distracted driving, and drinking and driving, the more likely they are to take the message seriously. Have more than one talk with your teens and arrange for MADD or local law enforcement to visit your teen’s school.

4) Consequences. Make sure that you discuss the consequences for your teen driver speeding, driving drunk, or driving distracted. Make it clear what you will need to do in the event that your teen does decide to drive unsafely. Your teen should know that there are consequences to dangerous driving – even when it does not cause an accident.

5) Options. Give your teen options to driving unsafely. For example, make sure your teen knows that they can always call you (and preferably a few other family members) to get a safe drive home when they need it – no questions asked. Repeat the message often. If your teens know that there is a safe alternative and there will be no punishment, they are more likely to make the safer choice.

Florida Car Accident Lawyer Blog

From The Globe and Mail:

Tyler was sitting on the couch watching TV when his mother walked over with a stack of baby pictures and a roll of Scotch tape.

“Mom, what are you doing?”

“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m pasting photos on you from when you were loving and cute – I want to remember the kid who would light up with pleasure whenever I paid attention to him.”

“Mom!”

Century Council Blog

A survey of 11th- and 12th-grade students finds that 90 percent believe that their peers are more likely to drink and drive on prom night, but few think that the behavior carries a high degree of risk, USA Today reported April 9.

The survey of more than 2,500 students, conducted by Liberty Mutual and Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD), found that 79 percent of students expected their classmates to drink and drive on graduation night. More than one in three students also said their parents had let them attend a party knowing that alcohol would be served.

“Newspapers, television, YouTube and Facebook are rife with tales of tragedy from reckless driving on prom and graduation nights, yet an ‘it won’t happen to me’ attitude continues to be so pervasive among our teens,” said Dave Melton of the Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety. “Add to the alcohol factor distractions like texting or talking on the cellphone while driving, or the greater likelihood of multiple people in the car, and the crash potential is very real.”

 
Young Female Drinkers More Likely to Develop Breast Disease, Researchers Say

Risk of developing benign breast disease increases five-fold among women who drank alcohol six or seven days a week during their teens and early 20s, according to research from the National Cancer Institute.

Benign breast disease is a known risk factor for breast cancer, researchers noted. Symptoms include hard lumps in the breasts, irregular cysts, breast discomfort, sensitive nipples, and itching.

Reuters reported April 12 that researcher Catherine Berkey of Harvard Medical School and colleagues drew their conclusions from a study of about 6,900 women ages 16-23. About one percent of the women reported having benign breast disease in a followup study at ages 18-27.

“Our study results give older girls and adolescents another reason to avoid alcohol,” said Berkey.

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Mothers Against Drunk Driving (Orange County)

Teens often enjoy the freedom of commuting to school and most parents support the idea. However a study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety suggests that teen commutes may contribute to Florida car accidents and accidents across the country. Researchers at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety collected data on accidents between 2001 and 2004 and found that there was an increase in car accident rates during school commutes in the afternoon and morning. As well, researchers found that about 30% of car accidents involving drivers between 16 and 17 years old occurred during school commute times.

According to researchers, many evening car accidents involving teen drivers take place due to drinking and driving or speeding, but this is not the case with school commute time accidents. Instead, researchers concluded that distraction and fatigue are the contributing causes in these accidents.

According to Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD), there are several things that can be done to help prevent Florida pedestrian accidents and traffic accidents during school rush hours:

1) Let your teen know about the dangers. Teen drivers may assume that commute drives are safer because they do not take place at night. Share statistics about school commute accident rates and encourage your teen drivers to stay extra alert.

2) Do not let your teen drive tired. Have your teen agree to drive only if they have gotten eight hours or more of sleep a night. Offer a ride if your teen has been staying up late or is under stress due to exams or school work.

3) Encourage your teen drivers to stay out of cars where other teen drivers display unsafe driver behavior. Teens often commute together and sometimes take turns carpooling. However, teens may also feel peer pressure not to speak up if a driver is driving distracted or tired.

Florida Car Accident Lawyer Blog

From The Globe and Mail

Jason and Melissa’s parents were having an argument in the kitchen. Both of their teenagers were in the adjoining TV room.

“All you ever do is think of yourself.”

“All you ever do is nag.”

“I wouldn’t have to nag if you ever did anything.”

Century Council Blog