Underage Drinking: Melrose Receives $5k Grant to Attack Issue

MELROSE, MA—Melrose Police now have some added ammunition in the fight against underage drinking.

Police announced Thursday that the department secured a $5,000 grant from the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security Highway Safety Division and funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration(NHTSA). According to the announcement, the funding will be used to increase patrols from March through Labor Day.

“We are pleased to be one of the recipients of this year’s grant, as it allows us to increase our patrol efforts,” Chief Michael Lyle said in the announcement. “We urge parents to never host parties for their underage children, and remind businesses to be vigilant about checking IDs. We will be monitoring the entire city, especially areas where teens are known to be drinking, to prevent underage youth from engaging in this activity.”

According to a 2013 survey taken by Melrose students in grades 9-12 (found on page 13 of the linked document), 48 percent of students reported using alcohol in the past 30 days and 34 percent of students reported engaging in binge-drinking activities.

According to the announcement, activities under the grant have lead to 917 youth citations and 377 arrests. Melrose is one of 72 Massachusetts communities that received NHTSA funding.

Patch attempted to contact Melrose Police, but they were not immediately available for comment. Check back with Patch to hear from police officials.