Underage drinking focus of training

OTHELLO — Several representatives from multiple local law enforcement agencies attended a training session to stop underage drinking Wednesday at Othello City Hall.

"This is cutting edge," Othello Police Chief Steve Dunnagan said. "Not a lot of this is going on around the state."

The session was to teach law enforcement how to implement a "shoulder tap" program.

A shoulder tap is when a minor asks an adult to purchase alcohol for them while waiting in front of a business. If the adult goes through with the transaction, police who are monitoring the situation move in and arrest the subject for furnishing alcohol to a minor.

The gross misdemeanor is punishable by a maximum $5,000 fine and up to one year in jail, he said.

The Othello Police Department plans to implement the program to curb underage drinking.

The department knew it was an issue when a 14-year-old was pulled over in Othello recently for driving under the influence of alcohol, Dunnagan added.

Ex-police chief Raul Almedia, now with the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, conducted the session.

In 2001 the statewide cost of underage drinking was about $1.4 billion, he said. Medical care accounts for $177 million, pain and lost quality of life costs $893 million and work loss and other costs total $372 million, he added.

Alcohol kills more youth than drugs, he said.

He asked the participants to brainstorm reasons for youth to drink.

The answers included, peer pressure, aggressive advertising, rebellion, youth trauma and to make up for shortcomings.

"They drink to get drunk," Almedia said.

Underage drinking prevention programs are necessary because of the consequences of underage drinking, he said.

Underage drinking results in sex, unwanted pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, injuries, fights, criminal records and creates bad habits for the future.

He suggested getting the parents involved when it's possible.

When law enforcement breaks up an underage party, the parents should be brought to the location to see the dirtiness, vomit, bottles, trash, experience the smells and see the ratio of males to females, he said. If parents see the situation their child was in, they are more likely to work with the law to keep their child from doing it again.

He suggested law enforcement begin working with local government to learn about the possibility of enforcing curfews, loitering laws and official closing times for public parks.

"I'm really sold on the reason we do this," Reducing Underage Drinking (RUaD) State Coordinator Pam Darby said.

Youth are hurting themselves and others with alcohol, she added.

A RUaD grant funds overtime for officers who conduct the shoulder tap programs.

For more information on underage drinking prevention, visit www.starttalkingnow.org.