Underage drinkers at Georgetown caught by the Metropolitan Police Department have not faced criminal prosecution since last May. Now the District of Columbia City Council is trying to make that rule permanent.
The council passed a bill Tuesday decriminalizing the possession and drinking of alcohol by minors in an attempt to clarify existing city regulations. The bill is now awaiting approval by District Mayor Anthony Williams and the U.S. Congress.
Councilmember Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large), who sponsored an amendment to the bill, said in an interview that he expects it to pass both hurdles.
Under the new law, students under 21 caught possessing or drinking alcohol by the MPD cannot be arrested, but instead are issued a civil citation. However, there will be no criminal record of the incident.
First offenders then face a “Diversion Program” consisting of community service or alcohol education, with the possibility of a $300 fine and suspension of driver’s license for 90 days.
Attempts to purchase alcohol, with or without a fake ID, or to use a fake ID to enter a 21-plus establishment, are still criminal offenses which can result in an arrest, but prosecutors must offer offenders a choice of a diversion program before going to trial.
Fines for possession or consumption can be much harsher than for other alcohol-related offenses since prosecutors have more discretion in civil cases; however, there is still no possibility of a night in jail or criminal record.
“The combination of the criminal stigma and the police excess was undesirable,” Mendelson explained.
Passed on a temporary basis early this summer, the Alcoholic Beverage Penalty Amendment Act of 2004 originated in response to last spring’s Cass v. the District of Columbia, in which a DC Superior Court declared all alcohol-related offenses by minors to be civil offenses. This decision prevented police officers from arresting offenders and made prosecution difficult.
Councilmember Sharon Ambrose (D-Ward 6) sponsored the bill in an effort to refine the law and reach a middle ground between entirely criminal and entirely civil consequences, according to Xavier Beltran, a staff member on the Committee for Consumer and Regulatory affairs, who prepared the legislation.
The original bill had language that would allow for a “two strikes system,” requiring prosecutors to offer offenders the diversion program in place of a trial and criminal penalties. However, Mendelson proposed an amendment, which passed 11-1, fully decriminalizing the possession or drinking of alcoholic beverages for minors, although it does increase the possibility of fines.
“There is no reason to criminalize-arrest-a young adult holding a can of beer in his back yard,” Mendelson said in a written statement. “If he’s underage he can be fined and lose his driving license. But don’t label it a criminal misdemeanor.”
At last spring’s hearing on the laws, MPD Lt. Patrick Burke testified that civil citations are an “insufficient tool for enforcement,” according to the Committee report.
When MPD officers issue citations, they must accept whatever identification information is given by the violator with no way of verifying it, Burke said in the report.
When MPD officers are able take offenders into custody, they can secure accurate identification.
