Taking A Stand Against Keg Parties

The Waterford Police Department, in conjunction with the Waterford Youth Services Bureau, is creating an underage drinking task force. The six-officer group is dedicated to both cracking down on stores that sell liquor to minors, and stopping house parties where alcohol and drugs are served to those too young to legally drink.

“The message is we are trying to prevent a tragedy,” said Police Lt. David Burton, who is the leader of the task force. “Every single year ... you’ll see it in the state that there is a carload of kids that have been killed. It happens every single year. We are not the bad guys, we are just trying to prevent a tragedy.”

An anonymous tip line is being set up, so people can call to alert officers of underage drinking parties. While kids throw some of these parties, parents throw others, Burton said.

“I know (parents) think they are doing a good job, as far as ‘Hey, I’ll take everybody’s keys, and everybody has a right to be here’,” he said.  “They’ll say ‘Everybody is safe, everybody is good under my own house.’ But under the statute, no parent has the right to distribute alcohol to a child unless you are a guardian of that child.”

Adults will be arrested if they are caught throwing alcohol parties for underage children, Burton said. Also, those parents open themselves up to other legal action as well, Burton said.

“That parent might get in trouble with a civil suit, because the other parent is upset (his or her) child is subjected to that,” he said. “You really don’t have the right to distribute alcohol to a child.”

How It Works

The group of six police officers, Nicole VanOverloop, John Davis, Gil Maffeo, Marc Balestracci, Steve Whitehead and Burton, will begin training soon. The task force should be ready to go by the end of the month, he said.

“This is going to be an all-hours operation,” he said. “If it’s a three-o-clock, four-o-clock in-the-morning party, guess what, my guys are going to be there.”

The program is paid as part of a $125,000 annual grant secured by the Waterford Youth Services Bureau. The tip line number is 860-437-8080.