The Garden City Telegram
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Coalition: Big implications for allowing minors to drink
Published 9/2/2009 in Podcasts
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Coalition: Many concerns with underage drinking
By The Telegram
In this week's edition of Talk of the Town, we talk with two members of the Finney County Health Coalition, a group of health, social service, education, community and other service providers working to improve the overall health of the community.
Steve Martinez of the Finney County Sheriff's Office, along with Margaret Perez, program coordinator with the coalition, discuss what's commonly known as the social hosting law. The law penalizes Kansas adults who knowingly or recklessly allow minors to consume alcoholic beverages on their property.
The podcast also covers some information about the coalition overall and a grant the group recently received to help combat underage drinking.
Garden City Police Department media release on social hosting law
In a collaborative effort with the Finney County Community Health Coalition, the Garden City Police Department would like to remind citizens they can be charged with a crime for knowingly or recklessly allowing minors to consume alcoholic beverages on property they own or are in control of.
The law, Hosting Minors Consuming Alcohol, is “intentionally or recklessly permitting a person’s residence or any land, building, structure or room owned, occupied or procured by such person to be used by an invitee of such person or an invitee of such person’s child or ward, in a manner that results in the possession or consumption therein of alcoholic liquor or cereal malt beverages by a minor.” Individuals found guilty of this class A person misdemeanor will face a minimum fine of $1,000.00 plus court costs. Those charged with this crime could face additional charges such as contributing to a child’s misconduct or furnishing alcohol to a minor.
Over the last year, officers from the Garden City Police Department have cited six (6) individuals for being in violation of this law. It is important to remember that you can be charged with a crime that has a $1,000.00 fine for allowing minors to consume alcohol on any property you have control over. It is the Garden City Police Department’s intention to utilize this criminal statute to assist us in curbing the amount of underage drinking that occurs in our community. Underage drinking can not only affect the individual doing the drinking, but can affect the person who simply supplies the place for it to happen. Please contact us at (620) 276-1300 should you have any questions about this law.
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