Kids and alcohol: Is there a solution?

There are kids in Sisters getting drunk. Others use other drugs: pot, crank and LSD. While most will survive, some will kill themselves or others, especially if they are driving.

Can anything be done?

Probably not. Teen-agers have been getting drunk for hundreds of years, and parents, many of whom got drunk themselves (and used drugs, and survived) as teens, have been worried about it.

Not that much has changed through the generations.

Adults often send children mixed messages about whether it is appropriate to use drugs, especially if the drug is alcohol or tobacco. How bad can it be, if Mom and Dad enjoy it so much?

Use by parents of illegal drugs raises other issues.

The most recent incident in Sisters involved the death of a 30-year-old woman who was drinking with a group of teens. Vonnie Danna was dared to guzzle a half gallon of vodka. She died of acute alcohol poisoning with a blood alcohol content of .33 percent, four times the legal limit in Oregon for a driver. Most people feel quite drunk with a blood alcohol level of less than .2 percent. The state listed Danna's as an "accidental death."

Some of the teens at the Tollgate party were also at a party at the 4th Sisters Lodge, No. 15, in January when five youth received citations for Minor in Possession from Deschutes County Deputies and Sisters Police after a neighbor complained.

The 17-year-old who told police she was in charge of the apartment said she didn't know how the alcohol got into the house.

Some kids risked broken bones jumping from the second floor balcony to avoid the police.

It's surprising they bothered.

"Our kids have the sense that nothing ever happens. They go through the diversion program and that is good, but I get the feeling that it (prosecuting MIP) is not a priority," said Charlie Kanzig, a counselor at Sisters Middle/High School who worked with kids and their parents last week on issues related to the death of the Danna in Tollgate.

Kanzig is right. MIPs are not a high priority in the court system, but that's because there is so much else to do.

None of the youngsters who were drinking with Vonnie Danna when she died in Tollgate were cited.

According to Detective Mike Johnston with Deschutes County Sheriff's Office, "By the time we got around to everybody, I had no proof who was drinking. You hate to punish the ones who are being honest (about drinking) as opposed to the ones who aren't."

Johnston said there were only three kids still on the scene when he arrived.

Johnston did not know if Danna provided the alcohol to the under-age drinkers that evening, if they bought it elsewhere or brought it from home.

"We were not able to determine that. I only get so much honesty," he said. He acknowledged that with the kids who stayed with Danna and waited for police, "we did not push too hard.

"They have to continue with their lives. If (we ask them to) testify against friends they have to see every day, it will destroy their honesty with us."

Even if he had, not much might have happened.

Despite Oregon law, which allows a "zero tolerance" policy for kids caught with alcohol or drugs, including a one year suspension of driving privileges for first time offenders, the law is not enforced this way in Deschutes County.

There just isn't money in the budget to actively work all the MIPs when there is so much other, more serious crime to fight.

Kids busted for MIP are usually handled informally through the juvenile department, according to Deschutes County Community Corrections office.

Juvenile Department Office Manager Sandy Thompson said it depends on whether it is a first, second, or third offense on how the drinking incident is handled.

Under the written "Minor in Possession of Alcohol" policy, a first time offender will face either a $50 diversion fee (less than the price of a pair of sneakers) or 40 hours of community service.

A second offense could bring a $100 diversion fee or 80 hours community service, plus substance abuse screening, plus substance abuse education or a substance abuse evaluation/recommendation and a 90-day license suspension.

According to Thompson, a first time or even second time offender rarely loses his or her license, despite provisions in the Oregon Driver's manual regarding the use or abuse of alcohol or any controlled substance.

The driver's manual stipulates that a teen caught with drugs or alcohol can be denied driving privileges (permit or license) for one year or until they reach 17, whichever is longer, for a first offense. A judge may review the order and withdraw it after 90 days.

For a second conviction, a teen will be denied driving privileges (permit or license) for one year or until they reach 18, whichever is longer. A judge may not withdraw an order based on a second or subsequent offense.

The manual states that "You do not have to be driving or in a motor vehicle for this law to apply."

But for the state law to be enforced, the teen with an MIP must be entered into the system, and this doesn't happen that often unless other crimes were committed along with the MIP.

In Deschutes County, simple MIPs are handled informally because there is just too much other, more serious crime involving juveniles.

"There just isn't time to have somebody with an MIP in the caseload," Thompson said.

While some teens have temporarily lost their driving privileges, it is very rare. She could not say when it last happened or how often.

According to Kelly McNamara, the only intake counselor with the Deschutes County Community Corrections Juvenile Justice Department, her caseload is now 500 juveniles. She handles all cases, not just MIPs, that are kept out of the formal court system, which itself is overloaded with juvenile crime.

She also sees kids who have been busted for shoplifting and criminal trespass. Under her caseload, she is able to see eight families per day in the afternoons for 20 minutes to a half hour.

Because of the rapid increase in referrals from law enforcement, "MIPs are one area we chose to cut corners," McNamara said.

First time MIP offenders used to be handled the way that second timers are now, including the loss of a driver's license for 90 days, according to McNamara. The policy of allowing first time offenders to pay $50 or 40 hours of community service was introduced to reduce caseload.

McNamara says that it has been somewhat effective, and she does not usually see a kid who has gotten an MIP back again. She believes this may be because the kid knows that the second time around the policy has some teeth in the bite.

If she does have a second time offender, they are usually involved with other crime.

In the City of Sisters, Juvenile Empowerment Team Program Coordinator Kirsten Werner handles things a little differently. A first time offender gets 40 hours of community service plus a drug evaluation if Werner thinks it is warranted, and meets four to five times with a peer group.

Werner would like to add the possibility of a 30-day license suspension "so they can get a taste of what it's like" but cannot under county guidelines.

In 1994, Werner said there were 12 kids referred to her program for MIP, including tobacco. In 1995, there were 16 tobacco referrals, two for marijuana of less than one ounce, 13 for alcohol, one for drug paraphernalia, and five for delivery of an imitation controlled substance.

Werner said she has not had any repeat offenders.

Counselors agree that the issue of teen drinking and drug use begins with parents. After the death in Tollgate, Sisters Middle/High counselor Kanzig wrote a letter to parents of the kids involved.

He offered a "few practical suggestions" that he acknowledged seemed obvious, but "the difficulty comes in implementing them."

Kanzig said parents need to know where their child is, who they are with and what they are doing. They need to ask who is driving and communicate with other parents, verify their children's plans and meet their child when he or she comes home.

It is a parent's "job and your right to know whether your child is safe," Kanzig wrote.

He cautioned parents about accepting that their child was a "designated driver" when alcohol is involved. The concept of "designated driver" has no place in youth activities, Kanzig wrote.

"If they are with other underage drinkers, they are contributing to the law being broken and can be cited. Another problem with this is that parents are simply being buffaloed. To hear kids tell it sometimes, everyone was the designated driver," Kanzig wrote.

He said that if parents know of a party with alcohol, they should call the police. "It may save a life," he wrote.

Kanzig said that parents can contribute to safe activities, and teach their children there are "countless activities that can be done without alcohol and drugs."

Don't accept the argument that "everyone is doing it." That is not true and even if many are, "you can have higher expectations for your child," he wrote.

Finally, Kanzig suggested that parents who feel overwhelmed need to ask for help. There are many resources in central Oregon for parents and teens.

And after all that is said, it must be recognized that the use of drugs and alcohol is pervasive in America. It is displayed constantly, and not just on MTV.

Witness the ads on TV showing active, energetic young people in the mountains tapping beer; the variety of drugs peddled during the 6 p.m. news; Joe Camel glamorizing the fact that it will be years before a young smoker struggles to breathe through torn and blackened lungs.

Against such forces the words of a parent may seem to have little effect. But actions can speak loudly, according to experts.

Even then, it is the nature of adolescents to rebel, to do forbidden things, to take risks and learn for themselves, to feel immortal. Regardless of the decade, youth have found new and more aggressive ways to probe the edges of survivable behavior.

Which can't prevent mothers and fathers from doing everything possible to help their children live through these complicated, dangerous times. Just like their parents did before them.