Gower Road Teenage Drinking Party Last Saturday Conforms to Pattern

The particular facts in police reports about alleged teenage drinking parties will vary: The locations are different, of course (this one was said to be at a home on Gower Road), and the time of day or night (this call came in at 10:26 p.m. last Saturday, Aug. 30).

Sometimes the ages are a bit different: At this one, the ages of the party goers were 16 to 18 years old, police said; and the host, charged with possession of alcohol by a minor, was 17 years old, police said. Present were one 18-year-old, four 17-year-old girls and one 16-year-old girl (others ran away).

(This article is based on the New Canaan police description of the incident, which is an accusation not proven in court.)

In this case, the alcohol found was Bud Light, Miller Lite and “Margarita Malt” (not a brand not we could find in an online search).

All the rest is in most police reports of similar incidents:

• A neighbor complained to police about a noisy party.
• Police arrived at the scene and many youths scattered.
• The parents weren’t home.
• The teenage daughter who hosted the party told police she had only invited a small number of friends, and then all sorts of teenagers began showing up.
• Containers of alcohol could be seen -- empty, full and partly full.
• Police had the parents of the teenagers come pick them up. They weren’t charged (it’s difficult to charge someone with possessing alcohol when they haven’t been seen very close to it or holding or drinking it).

NOT in this particular report:

• The host was NOT reported to have been running away and hiding.
• Nothing about refusing to allow police inside (police say they have a right to check to see if everyone is safe) or turning off all the lights inside and pretending no one is home.
• No mention of alcohol games like beer pong.

Whatever the facts in this particular case, police reports continue to reflect the same patterns over and over: Parents continue to trust their teenagers; teenagers continue to host parties with alcohol while parents are away.