It could soon became a violation of the law in San Anselmo whenever two people under the age of 21 gather and either imbibes alcohol.
The towns of San Anselmo and Corte Madera and the city of Larkspur are considering adopting a standardized social host ordinance to facilitate enforcement by their newly consolidated police departments. Social host ordinances prohibit adults from serving alcohol to minors at parties or social gatherings at their homes or other private property they own.
Currently, San Anselmo’s ordinance prohibits gatherings where five or more people under the age of 21 are present and alcoholic beverages or a controlled substance is in the possession of, or consumed by, any of the minors.
The proposed, new uniform ordinance, however, would apply where two minors are at a gathering and one or more of them consumes alcohol. Controlled substances would no longer be covered by the ordinance.
The social host ordinances in place in Corte Madera and Larkspur already use the more restrictive language. San Anselmo’s Town Council was slated to vote on a first reading of the amended ordinance Tuesday night, but the vote was delayed due to a technical matter. The council did discuss it.
“I agree that there may be a need to regulate large, drunken teenage parties. But the proposed ordinance is unnecessarily broad and top-heavy in its delegation of authority to the police,” said San Anselmo Councilman Ford Greene. “Under its terms, a 20-year-old drinking wine at a family dinner with her or his parents would be subject to prosecution under the ordinance, potentially as a criminal misdemeanor.”
San Anselmo Councilman Doug Kelly expressed a similar concern.
“I have three boys — two minors and a juvenile. So if one of them brings home a beer, I’m in violation of that social host ordinance. That’s how it’s written,” Kelly said. “It’s kind of a wide-open law; you can read anything you want into it.”
Central Marin Police Authority Chief Todd Cusimano said officers would use good judgment when enforcing the law.
“We’re not going door-to-door looking for one or two people drinking in a house. That’s not the role of the police,” Cusimano said. “What we’re looking for are the public nuisances, the big parties with 50 to 100 teens.”
Greene said, “I take Chief Cusimano at his word that officers will exercise discretion in the enforcement of the ordinance, but in a nation founded on the rule of law such delegation based on trust is not the way we should do things.”
Cusimano said San Anselmo’s ordinance, adopted in 1993, more closely resembles the penal code violation of contributing to the delinquency of a minor than a true social host accountability ordinance. He said the ordinance is more difficult to enforce than most modern social host ordinances.
Cusimano said for an adult to be found in violation of San Anselmo’s ordinance police must show that the adult was present when the gathering took place and that the adult provided the alcohol to the minors. Violation is a misdemeanor and violators can face a fine of up to $1,000 or six months in jail. The proposed uniform social host ordinance would give police the option of either treating a violation of the law as a misdemeanor or simply fining the violator. First offenders would be fined $750. A second offense within a 12-month period would result in an $850 fine, and a third offense within a 12-month period would increase the fine to $1,000.
Greene also objects to the fact that anyone seeking to appeal such a fine would have to pay an initial $150 appeal processing fee. The fee would be refunded if the person won his or her case.
Cusimano said that in 2014 eight social host violations occurred in Corte Madera and Larkspur while no one was cited in San Anselmo. San Rafael police Lt. Dan Fink said there were three violations of San Rafael’s social host ordinance in 2014.
The decision to seek standardization of the ordinance came from the Central Marin Police Authority Council. Two council members from each of the municipalities sit on the council, which oversees the authority. John Wright and Tom McInerney represent San Anselmo on the authority’s council.
Wright said he has sympathy for parents trying to control teenage children. Wright said several years ago one of his sons, who was then underage, hosted a party where alcohol was served in the family’s home while he and his wife were away. There was no police involvement.
Nevertheless, Wright said, “I think having a strong social host ordinance is an important tool to ensure there are consequences when those things happen.”
