Law Prohibiting Underage Drinking on Private Property Introduced

The Lacey Township Committee introduced an ordinance Thursday that would deem underage drinking on private property a crime.

“I think this is a good ordinance,” Committeeman David Most said. “Due to the incidents that we’ve had around town, this has a lot more teeth as far as private property.”

The Municipal Alliance in conjunction with Most and the police department proposed the law that would fine violators $250 for the first offense and $350 for any subsequent offense. The court also could suspend or postpone for six months the driving privileges of the defendant, if convicted.

“It’s not going to solve the problem of underage drinking but it’s another tool that can be used,” Municipal Alliance Coordinator Heather Scanlon previously said.

Scanlon is hoping the new ordinance will create awareness regarding the liabilities of allowing those who are underage to drink on private property, she said.

The ordinance also includes a 911 immunity. If an underage person calls 911 to report an emergency as a result of alcohol consumption, the individual is immune from prosecution.

“It’s an issue that I believe is desperately needed in the state of New Jersey,” resident and retired police officer Jim Letellier said. “I’m for it. I think it’s needed but lets make sure it’s enforceable."

Letellier questioned the legality of the proposed ordinance, saying that the state previously prohibited underage drinking on public property but deliberately left out private property.

“My understanding of the law is that a municipality cannot enact a law in which the state has preempted by saying it’s a lawful conduct or they chose not to make it an unlawful conduct,” he said.

Police already have the authority to charge homeowners, whether they’re home or not, and those who provide the alcohol to underage persons but a municipality cannot enforce a law that makes the state take action on a license, he said.

In June of 2000, a law was enacted giving municipalities the power to pass such ordinances.  Attorney Lauren Staiger said the township is adopting word for word from the statute.

More than 13 municipalities in Ocean County, including Brick Township, have passed similar ordinances. According to a survey conducted by the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey in 2007 and 2009, 305 out of 455 communities had enacted a private property ordinance.

Lacey Township must do a second reading of the ordinance before enforcement.