Social Host Ordinance Moves Forward

Hopkins City Council unanimously advanced a proposed “” past first reading Tuesday—but questions remain about the best language for an ordinance intended to help police better prevent underage drinking.

Lisa Peilen—director of municipal affairs for the Minnesota Multi Housing Association—asked the council to reconsider language that she thought could hold apartment complex owners responsible for their tenants’ behavior.

Countered Police Chief Mike Reynolds: “I think we’re reaching here.”

Peilen’s worries follow on the heels of Councilwoman Cheryl Youakim’s earlier concerns that the ordinance could result in a misdemeanor for parents whose children throw a house party when they leave.

A social host ordinance would allow the city to charge people with a misdemeanor if underage drinking takes place that they knew about or should have known about.

That last phrase—knew about or should have known about—has generated the most discussion. People like Peilen and Youakim say they don’t object to the goals of the measure, but they worry that such ambiguous phrasing could lead to prosecuting the wrong people.

City Attorney Jeremy Steiner said the phrase is actually a common legal term with meanings established through case law.

Additionally, the ordinance creates a new crime—one not already present in state law, he noted. With criminal violations, the city has the much higher “beyond a reasonable doubt” burden of proof. A good defense attorney will invariably contest whether the person charged knew or should have known about the underage drinking.

“When you criminalize something, we’re held to a pretty high standard by the courts, the Constitution,” Steiner said.

That allayed Youakim’s fears somewhat: “Even though I’m really having a tough time with it, I think the good outweighs my concerns,” she said.

Police say they just want to deter underage drinking, not convict as many people as possible. Although Reynolds acknowledged that Hopkins really hasn’t had a problem with these offenses in the past, he said the ordinance would be a good education tool demonstrating that Hopkins takes underage drinking seriously.

Police will research the issue further and discuss it with Peilen’s group prior to second reading Sept. 27.