A Montgomery County police commander says his Bethesda-based district has seen an uptick in underage drinking incidents in the last few months and that his officers “will work exhaustively to ensure” that parents who host underage drinking parties are fined and charged criminally.
Capt. David Falcinelli’s remarks were in an email distributed Tuesday through the county’s Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center.
Falcinelli pointed to the crash that killed two Thomas S. Wootton High School graduates last June, in which driver Samuel Ellis was criminally charged and allegedly drunk after drinking at a house party earlier that night.
He also said 2nd District officers have received calls from “various high schools about students showing up at school events intoxicated,” likely referring to underage drinking citations that were given to 14 students attending a rave-like dance and fundraising event Sunday at Walt Whitman High School.
The school’s student newspaper, The Black & White, reported that despite warnings before the event from Principal Alan Goodwin that drinking wouldn’t be tolerated, a mix of sophomores, juniors and seniors were pulled into the school’s main office and given underage drinking citations by police.
The paper reported each of the 14 students received a three-day in-school suspension and 10 hours of community service and could be banned from other extracurricular activities at the school.
In November, Goodwin sent an email to parents advising them not to host any underage drinking parties after he learned that some had recently hosted such parties.
“Parents, find other ways to bond with your child. Please,” Goodwin wrote.
Falcinelli wrote Tuesday that, “Many parents choose to bury their heads in the sand and pretend that their kids are not drinking.”
“Most alarming is that several parents will actually host these events and be uncooperative with the police upon our arrival at the house,” Falcinelli wrote. “While I am not in the position to judge your decisions as parents, I do feel it is important to explain the law and the consequences that can occur for failing to follow it. In summary, if you host a party where underage people are consuming alcohol, we will work exhaustively to ensure that you are charged $2,500 per person under 21 found to be consuming alcohol at your party. If convicted, you will also have a criminal record.”
Falcinelli also pointed to a house party in mid-January in Bethesda held by students from American University. According to online police records, the incident happened Jan. 15 at a house in the 5900 block of Walhonding Road.
Charges for the hosts of the event “are still in process,” Falcinelli wrote. More than 100 students were cited for possession of alcohol by a minor and Falcineilli said there was also an assault on an officer and a street robbery, “both related to young people being intoxicated from this party.”
“Alcohol and young people in unsupervised settings are a disaster waiting to happen,” Falcinelli wrote. “Please help us prevent another child from dying.”
