A new city ordinance pertaining to underage alcohol consumption and possession will provide law enforcement with authority to enter private property and cite those responsible for providing minors with alcohol.
The Clearlake City Council entertained the first reading of the ordinance during its July 12 meeting. The law will take effect 30 days following the second reading, which is scheduled for July 26.
“I have tried for almost a year to bring this ordinance to our city,” said Mayor Judy Thein. “Unfortunately, I met with a few obstacles in the past, but I was never going to give up doing this. I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to Chief McClain and Dale Neiman for helping me to bring this ordinance to the city council this evening.”
The law pertains specifically to underage drinking occurring on private property. It prohibits consumption and possession of alcohol by persons younger than 21 unless the minor”s parent or legal guardian is physically present to supervise the activity. The law will hold responsible anyone allowing such activity to occur.
“At this time there are no laws that address a private residence,” explained Clearlake Chief of Police Allan McClain. “All the laws that we have now allow us to apply to the law as long as it occurs in a public area. This will allow us to cite those individuals who are allowing (underage drinking) to go on.”
McClain states in his written report to the council, “Our community is a prime vacation destination and we need to protect everyone by insuring there is no alcohol consumption at any private residence without direct supervision of the person”s parent or legal guardian.”
The council passed the first reading of the ordinance on a 5-0 vote as Municipal Code 5-9.2: “Supervision by parent or guardian of alcoholic beverage possession or consumption by persons under twenty-one.” The code specifies the following:
a. No person under the age of twenty-one (21) years shall possess or consume any alcoholic beverage at any place not open to the public, unless that person is being supervised by the person”s parent or legal guardian.
b. No person shall suffer, permit, allow or host a social gathering at the person”s place of residence where one (1) or more persons under the age of twenty-one (21) are present and alcoholic beverages are in the possession of or being consumed by any person under the age of twenty-one (21) years and there is no supervision by the parent or legal guardian of each of the participants under the age of twenty-one (21).
c. Any person violating this section is guilty of a misdemeanor.
Violators of the law could face up to $1,000 in fines and/or up to one year in jail.
There was a concern brought up by the public regarding probable cause for officers entering private property and the potential of misuse of authority. McClain said that the code does not define probable cause for entering privately owned property, however he will not condone misuse of authority by his officers. “I assure you, that will not be tolerated and if officers are misusing their authority I want to know about it,” McClain said.
A second ordinance addressing underage drinking is expected to be brought before the council in the near future. “When I first read this ordinance, my first reaction was that it was not strong enough. I felt it didn”t have enough ?meat” in it as it needed more toughness and more durability,” said Mayor Thein. “I wanted parents, guardians and adults to also feel the serious consequences of underage drinking and to be accountable if they fuel alcohol to our youth. I didn”t want to leave anything to chance.
“I had several sessions with Chief McClain concerning this ordinance. Through his guidance I came to an understanding that through the second ordinance that we will bring to the city council shortly, these issues of concern will be addressed.”
The next ordinance to be considered by the council will pertain to cost recovery related to multiple response to locations that continuously allow underage drinking to occur.
Mayor Thein further reported that she plans to take the current ordinance to the Lake County Board of Supervisors and the Lakeport City Council for their consideration in adopting a similar ordinance. “All jurisdictions must be united if we are to be successful,” she said.
“If all of us working together, supporting these ordinances can save a life or lives and encourage parents to take a more active interest in their children, then our job will have served its purpose. We need to do all that we can to bring the DUI statistics down in Lake County.”
Contact Denise Rockenstein at drockenstein@clearlakeobserver.com.
