In less than five months, police have issued 12 fines of $250 to
partiers and their parents for hosting parties where minors were
drinking alcohol.
In less than five months, police have issued 12 fines of $250 to partiers and their parents for hosting parties where minors were drinking alcohol.
In June, the city council passed a Social Hosting Ordinance, which allows police to slap youths or their parents with fines up to $2,000 for holding gatherings with four or more underage drinkers. Proponents said the resolution would reduce underage drinking and the police workload. While still early, money from fines is already rolling in and officers believe the ordinance is working.
“We really think it’s going to be a successful tool,” Sgt. Jim Gillio said.
In addition to $3,000 worth of fines, police have also issued several warnings. When police showed up to deliver most of the citations, parents were not home and the parties involved dozens to scores of teens drinking beer, said Sgt. Wes Stanford, who helped author the ordinance and who works nights Friday through Monday. After the incident, the city sent a bill for $250 to the person who rents or owns the residence.
When police showed up at the door, a typical response was “Is this that $250 ticket?” Stanford said.
Officers can issue elevated fines of $1,000 and $2,000 for subsequent offenses. Residents violating the city’s noise policy can also be saddled with a bill to reimburse police for time spent, which amounts to about $150 per officer per hour.
While it was too early to make definitive conclusions about the ordinance’s efficacy, anecdotal evidence was positive, councilmen said. There have not been any repeat offenders and there were no large incidents around graduation or during the summer, they said.
“The word is spreading in the underage drinking community,” councilman Roland Velasco said.
While police do not have statistics on whether the number of noise or party complaints have decreased since June, officers said they have not been called to as many incidents as they usually would, Gillio said. In addition, when police get to a party with underage drinkers, it is easier to deal with the situation because the ordinance gives them broader power.
In order for police to nab someone for being a minor in possession of alcohol, officers have to see the person holding the alcohol, Gillio said. However, youths usually dump their alcohol or toss away the containers when police arrive. Under the ordinance, officers only need to connect available alcohol and at least four minors to the same residence to fine the residence’s owner.
It gives “officers another tool in their tool belt to use to combat this problem,” Velasco said.
Residents tired of drunk teenagers and loud parties welcomed the ordinance.
“Fine them,” said longtime Gilroyan Alex Trelut. “It’s the parents responsibility to take care of minors.”
As the holiday season ramps up and residents – and youth – have more parties, police will respond with more citations, Gillio said.
The police’s early willingness to issue warnings and fines should send a clear message to parents that they cannot expect to be able to look the other way when their children have a party.
“You may have your own philosophy, but it’s not what society expects from you as a parent,” councilman Russ Valiquette said.
