This document discusses the risks of underage drinking and provides tips for parents to address this issue. It notes that parents can be held financially and criminally liable for underage drinking that occurs in their home, even if they were unaware of a party. The document advises parents to talk to their teens about alcohol before it becomes a problem, avoid leaving teens home alone where unsupervised parties could occur, inform neighbors if leaving town, and ensure adequate insurance. Parents who supply alcohol to minors or are negligent can face fines, restitution, and criminal charges in some instances. The best approach is to maintain open communication with teens and let them know they can come to parents for help without punishment.

1. By Victoria Aronne
Underage drinking: Talking
to your teen about alcohol
The time to start talking to
your teen about underage
drinking is now.

2. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images
 What can happen with under
aged drinking

4. Protect Yourself: Talk seriously with
your teen about alcohol, parties and
family liability long before it's an issue.
Avoid leaving teens home alone
overnight - wild parties can mushroom
into existence without any intention on
your child's part. Let neighbors know
when you leave town. And finally,
consult your homeowner's insurance
policy to make sure you have adequate
personal liability insurance.

5. Once upon a time, teens and
20somethings were invited to parties.
These days, they find out about them
via Facebook, MySpace and text
messages that can quickly catapult a
small gathering of half a dozen close
friends into a melee attended by
hundreds. Remember the old “You
tell two friends and they tell two
friends…” shtick? It’s mathematics at
work and the perils are fairly obvious.
When strangers invade your home,
house rules are the least of your
worries. When it comes to teen parties
and underage drinking, here’s what
else your family should worry about -
and tips on how to protect yourself:

6. Financial Liability: In addition to civil
suits, parents may be subject to police
fees. Increasingly,
In some counties, parents are
financially and criminally liable
when alcohol is consumed by
minors at a party – which in
some cases is defined as a
gathering of three or more
people – whether or not the
parents knew about the event
beforehand. “I would not
want,” says California attorney
Mary Carey, “to be the test
case.”
Criminal Charges: Parents who are caught supplying
alcohol, even inadvertently, to minors face serious
liabilities. In some states, parents are subject to severe
financial consequences, including fines and
restitution to victims in the event of an accident. In
addition, they may be charged in the criminal courts
for, among other things, contributing to the
delinquency of a minor. In one instance, a mother
bought a keg for her son’s 21st birthday party, which
would have been fine except that the party guests
included minors who began drinking too. After a
brawl broke out and police arrived, she was arrested,
convicted and ended up doing considerable
community service, in lieu of jail time.

7. Childhood and teen drink
The most import things we can do for our
children through their growing years is talk to
them and always let them know they can come to
you with any problem they have and know you
are there to help them not punish in their time of
need. I found through my own children because I
allowed them to be open with me with any
problem that my son came home from college
and asked for help with a drug problem that was
starting. As a parent we are there to nurture them
and stand by them in the worst of moments for
both them and us. I can tell you that because we
talked it was easier for him to come and ask for
my help which prevented nay further bad actions
to himself and others all it take is understandings
and love on our parts as parents to be there
before they fall and to help pick them back up
again. My actions with my son, providing him the
help he needed, he is a strong person today and
alive because he knew he could come top his
parents and talk to them about anything and they
would be there. Lend you heart, soul and a hand
to a child when they need it, be there and love
them unconditionally.

8. The Problem with Teen Parties
Teens, Underage Drinking and
Parental Liability
http://youngadults.about.com
/od/legalissues/a/partyliabilit
y.htm
Underage drinking: Talking to
your teen about alcohol
http://www.mayoclinic.com/h
ealth/teen-drinking/MY00521