It’s the law: To guard teens, stop the enablers

When I was a teenager and knew everything, I reveled in the countless Hollywood movies that depicted teenagers saving the universe. We were always smarter and quicker than those slow-witted adults, whether they were parents or the authorities. Our decision-making prowess was nonpareil. It never occurred to me that those feeble parents were once super-smart, quick teenagers. How they went slow and dorky, I just don’t know.
Outside of Hollywood, society understands that teenagers, as a whole, have a very poor track record for decision-making. This is why there are laws that prevent drinking until age 21, graduated driving licenses, and so on. It should also come as no surprise that teenagers, who prefer to travel in packs, make even worse decisions in groups than when alone.
Recognizing this destructive tendency, the law foists certain responsibilities upon us slow, dorky parents. And, if we fail to guide our minors, we just might find ourselves on the wrong side of the law.
Failing to exercise reasonable care, supervision, protection and control over a child can mean criminal charges. This law is usually referred to as contributing to the delinquency of a minor. It is a misdemeanor and may include a fine up to $2,500 and a one-year prison term. That, however, is not the end of your troubles.
While you are sitting in jail, you may also be sued in civil court for the damage caused by your child. For many years, the “common law” stated that parents were not responsible for their children’s boneheaded or criminal actions. But, as mentioned, teens cause a disproportionate amount of damage to both property and persons, so states started holding parents responsible for damage or injury caused by their children.
If your child’s willful misconduct causes injury or property damage, you could be liable for as much as $37,100 in damages. It should also come as no surprise that parents are liable for injury and damages resulting from a car accident caused by a child and in nearly any case in which a parent negligently allows a child to get hold of a gun and the child causes harm.
Alcohol and minors
Then there is the unique situation of providing alcohol to minors.
Far and away, the greatest risk of death for an older teenager is to die in an auto accident. Some 40 percent of all teenage deaths are due to auto accidents, with at least half of those being alcohol-related. Alcohol is also a factor in the second and third leading causes of teenage death: homicide and suicide.
Teens are already at a great disadvantage in decision-making, and alcohol exacerbates the problem.
Parents have asked me what can be done about adults who provide alcohol to their children. Can a concerned parent successfully sue in civil court to prevent an enabling adult from providing alcohol to your child?
The short answer is “yes,” but it is a complex subject, and most people will not have the resources to pursue such a lawsuit.
Moreover, a strange California statute provides that a social host who furnishes alcohol to any person is immune from lawsuits for damages or injury suffered by that person, or any third party, resulting from consumption of that alcohol.
This leads to quite an anomaly. If your child borrows the car, gets drunk on alcohol he procured and then kills someone, you will have civil liability for the damages caused. If, however, you give your child the alcohol (and he is not yet obviously intoxicated) and hand him the keys and he mows down an innocent bystander, you are immune from liability.
Ignoring for the moment the criminal ramifications of providing alcohol to a child, as strange as it may seem, you are more protected civilly it you provide the alcohol to your child than if you allow him to get it on his own.
I have been told repeatedly that the teenagers in our valleys know of houses where alcohol flows freely to anyone who shows up. Mom or Dad is either turning a blind eye or, in some cases, actively providing the alcohol and drugs.
The best tactic is to report enabling behavior to the police, because providing alcohol to a minor is nearly always a crime. The police are very aware that alcohol and drugs are behind most of the troubles in our valleys. It would be a rare police officer who would not want to see such enablers called before the courts.
I long for the days when I was omniscient and invincible. Those days will not return, but to assure that the present crop of brilliant and engaging humans makes it to dork stage — and that we don’t incur large civil judgments — we will have to make some decisions for them.
Gary Redenbacher of Scotts Valley is an attorney in private practice. Contact him at ga**@re*********.com