[CCHS] Fwd: for the listserver

[Louisa Coleman]

Louise Coleman
Concord-Carlisle High School
500 Walden Street
Concord, MA  01742
lcoleman at colonial.net
978-341-2490 x7101

----- Original Message -----

Dear Parents:

Please read the following article concerning underage drinking and Social
Host Liability. I bring it to your attention because 34% of CCHS students
reported in our 2008 Youth Risk Behavior Survey that they had 
>"
a
>ttended parties in homes where alcohol use by teens is allowe
d."

Underage drinking and associated risk behaviors are of great concern to
all of us. Please continue to be vigilant in enforcing clear boundaries
for your sons and daughters. Parent-to-parent communication is also very
important in making sure that drinking is not taking place in the homes of
others.

Best Regards,

- Peter Badalament


Mother sent to prison for hosting son's underage drinking party
By Jill Harmacinski
Eagle Tribune 
January 08, 2009
 

LAWRENCE — Modesta Brito knew her teenage son was having a party on the
night of Nov. 24, 2007. She was aware he and his friends were drinking
beer in her home. And she knew they were playing the drinking game
quarters, even giving them a plastic cup to bounce the coins into, a
prosecutor said.

Allowing the underage drinking party in her Hampshire Street apartment was
a risk Brito took. That risk became harsh reality when Ryan Bourque, 17,
left the party and was killed in a car crash, prosecutor Jennifer Kunsch
said. 

"That reality turned into a tragedy," Kunsch said. 

Brito, a 42-year-old mother of three, will spend the next three months in
prison after yesterday admitting to violating the state's Social Host
Liability Law and allowing the party in her home. 

After Bourque's death, both Brito and her son Edrian Brito Mendez, were
charged with violating the state's Social Host Liability Law. It was the
first time ever, in Essex County,  such alcohol charges were filed against
both parent and child. 

"Parents think they can control the situation and provide a safe haven by
being there," said Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett. "The
message is the law is the law." 

Accompanied in court by tearful members of her family, Brito yesterday was
handcuffed and taken to MCI-Framingham to start serving her sentence
immediately. 

"You were the responsible adult. You were the one who should have been
looking out for your son and the other kids," Judge Thomas Brennan said.
"In this case, the consequences were tragic and for that, you bear some
responsibility." 

Tagliaferri said the underage drinking party was "not the case of a cool
mom wanting to party with her kids' friends." 

"It's not something she engaged in in the past. And it's not something
she'll engage in in the future," Tagliaferri said. 

Mendez, 18, now a student at Northern Essex Community College, also was
charged with two counts of providing alcohol to minors. All of his charges
were continued without a finding for a year in a plea agreement reached
and approved by Brennan earlier yesterday. 

Mendez's defense attorney, Jennifer Capone, broke into tears as she
described the regret the teen feels over Bourque's death. The two were
both students at Central Catholic High School. 

Brennan noted that the primary responsibility for supervising the
household rested with Modesta Brito as her son was then 17. However, the
teen is still "responsible for his actions." 

"This is a very serious matter and the consequences were horrendous,"
Brennan said. 

Two of Bourque's relatives were in court yesterday. They left quietly
after the proceeding and declined comment. 

A senior at Central Catholic, Bourque got a ride home from the party at
Brito's house around 11 p.m. He left his home again two hours later and
crashed his car on South Broadway. He was pronounced dead at Lawrence
General Hospital shortly afterward. 

A police investigation revealed that Mendez charged friends $5 to drink
beer from a 30-pack he had in a refrigerator in the apartment. 

After learning that Bourque had died, Brito allegedly said to her son,
"This is going to get bad. You know I'm going to get in trouble." 

In July, the mother and son rejected a deal where they would both serve
three-month jail sentences, deciding instead to take their chances at
trial. Both trials had been expected to start yesterday. 

Brito was formally sentenced to one year in jail with 90 days to be served
and the balance suspended for two years. She also will have to serve 200
hours of community service and pay fines. 

Mendez must undergo alcohol evaluation and treatment, attend alcohol
education programs and perform 100 hours of community service. He also
must speak to youth groups about the dangers of alcohol and pay fines. 

His sentence was similar to that of two other Central Catholic students,
Geffrey Bergeron, 17, and Jamie Adames, 17, who also faced alcohol-related
charges after the party. Their cases were continued and they were both
ordered to speak with other students about the dangers of underage
drinking. 

Speaking generally about underage drinking, Blodgett said he hopes parents
understand "there's no gray area. It's a black and white law." 

"It's very important the public understands how serious these charges
are," he said. "The Legislature amended the law to take into account
parents who hold these parties." 

In addition to deaths, sexual assaults and other crimes are reported after
such parties, he said, referring to a series of pending criminal cases in
Essex County. 

"Once more we need to get the message out there that parents need to lead
by example. ... There are tragic consequences," Blodgett said. 

Lawrence police Chief John Romero commended Judge Brennan "for recognizing
the seriousness of the charge." 

"There can be no worse consequence to a parent's participation in underage
drinking than the tragedy that fell upon the Bourque family. Parents have
to realize that young people that are drinking may well be getting behind
the wheel of a car," he said. 

"This case should stand as an example that people will be held accountable
for their failure to take responsible action," Romero said.



Peter Badalament
Principal
Concord-Carlisle High School
500 Walden St.
Concord, MA 01742
(978) 341-2490 x. 7110