Underage Drinking

The day after Gov. Martin O'Malley's 18-year-old daughter was briefly hospitalized, apparently after drinking alcohol, the first lady called the incident a "teachable moment." "We … encourage all parents and teenagers to be safe this graduation season," Katie Curran O'Malley said in a statement Friday. Tara O'Malley, the second-eldest of the governor's four children, graduated Wednesday from Notre Dame Preparatory School and had been at a celebration Thursday. A Baltimore police officer found her "apparently unconscious" with a friend at the Inner Harbor about 7:30 p.m. She was treated at Harbor Hospital and released that night.

Anne Arundel police on Monday reported breaking up an underage drinking party at a Severna Park residence, where nearly two dozen juveniles were charged, including one that police said fell out of a second story window as he attempted to avoid detection. It marked the third time in four months that police had been called to the residence on the 100 block of Southway Drive in Severna Park, police said. The latest incident occurred on Saturday night at around 9 p.m., when officers said that upon arrival they saw juveniles leaving the residence with beer cans in hand.

How shocking that a 20-year-old college senior who worked in Rep. Andy Harris' congressional office drank a glass of wine at her farewell party last summer! ("Md. lawmaker under fire for underage drinking by intern," Jan. 4.) That should have been Page One news. Why doesn't The Sun put political blogger Joe Steffen, who broke this non-story, on its editorial board? He would fit right in. Marie Mullen

Harford County sheriff's deputies and Maryland State Police report: Aberdeen Erik Takacs, 22, of the 700 block of Plater Street, was arrested Thursday on a bench warrant in a case in which he was charged with possession of an opiate without a prescription, drug possession other than marijuana and drug possession with intent to distribute. Corey Lamont Blagmond, 34, who has addresses in the 200 block of Perrywood Court and the 200 block of Eider Court in Havre de Grace, was charged Saturday with drug possession other than marijuana.

I applaud the courageous vote of the Maryland state legislature to raise the tax on alcoholic beverages. Aside from the obvious tax windfall, there is evidence from over 110 professional, peer-reviewed papers that such tax increases reduce underage alcohol use. As a pediatrician with a busy practice, I no longer ask teens if they drink. The Youth Risk Behavior Study in Maryland has shown that 82 percent of graduating seniors have used alcohol, and a quarter of them have engaged in binge drinking.

A 19-year-old Naval Academy midshipman was cited for underage drinking at downtown Annapolis bar during an enforcement sweep last week, police said Tuesday. Sara James Markwith, a Washington state resident attending the military college, left her seat at the Acme Bar & Grill when police and other city inspectors entered the bar in the 100 block of Main St., police said. Maj. Scott Baker said officers "had to coax her out of the bathroom. " She gave police an incorrect birthdate, and she became argumentative with officers, but later told police she slipped in through a back door when someone else was returning inside.

Rep. Andy Harris came under fire Tuesday for an incident last summer in which an underage intern was allowed to drink alcohol at a farewell party on a veranda of the U.S. Capitol. A spokesman for Harris, Ryan Nawrocki, confirmed that the party took place but said aides in the office did not realize the intern, a senior in college, was under 21. When the incident was brought to light, Harris, a Republican, disciplined his chief of staff, Kevin Reigrut, though Nawrocki would not say what action was taken.

In a move designed to stop adults who permit underage drinking parties during the prom and graduation seasons, Harford County Crime Solvers will begin paying rewards for tips leading to criminal charges or civil citations against people providing alcohol to minors."

A 16-year-old caught drinking beer in a North Laurel restaurant has cost Wild Buffalo Grill owner Maria Marek a $500 fine and a six-day license suspension on two consecutive weekends starting Friday, according to a decision by the Howard County Alcoholic Beverage Association. Howard police Detective Mark Baxter told the board that officers found the youth drinking inside the restaurant the night of Nov. 12. John Curtis, the manager and Marek's brother-in-law, told them a regular patron, age 26, had bought a "bucket" of five beers, and the youth took one, police said.

Police wanted criminal charges filed against a woman who they believed supplied alcohol to underage drinkers at her Ellicott City home the night last year that 17-year-old Steven Dankos was killed in a drunken-driving accident, according to prosecutors. A Howard County District Court commissioner refused, and Linda Stapf was given a citation instead. That procedural dispute led to prosecutors' agreeing Wednesday in Howard County District Court to Judge Mary C. Reese's putting Stapf's case on the inactive docket, where it will stay as long as Stapf attends a victim impact panel hosted by Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

Underage drinking and drug use is a concern in our community throughout the year, especially during April and May, when our teens will make celebration decisions on prom night. Parties often involve peer pressure to engage in underage drinking, drugs and thrill-seeking behavior. This combination can contribute to teens making bad decisions. How our teens celebrate on prom night is affected by their options. All 12 Howard County high school PTAs are addressing the need for safe after-prom celebrations by providing a safe, fun option in an alcohol and drug-free setting with adult supervision.

Michael Thomas Truluck, 13, texted his family that he needed a ride home shortly before 6 p.m. Saturday. His mother said she saw nothing unusual in the request and sent her fiance to pick up Michael and two other boys, who had spent the afternoon together. "I knew he was hanging out with a bunch of friends, and there was nothing unusual about that," Kristina Keys said. "He texted and asked for a ride home. We picked him and two friends up. " Keys said she had no idea that his Saturday afternoon, which usually included lunch at a fast-food restaurant and hoops at Double Rock Park in Parkville, involved drinking an alcohol-laced energy drink, which an unidentified adult purchased for the pre-teens.

How shocking that a 20-year-old college senior who worked in Rep. Andy Harris' congressional office drank a glass of wine at her farewell party last summer! ("Md. lawmaker under fire for underage drinking by intern," Jan. 4.) That should have been Page One news. Why doesn't The Sun put political blogger Joe Steffen, who broke this non-story, on its editorial board? He would fit right in. Marie Mullen

Rep. Andy Harris came under fire Tuesday for an incident last summer in which an underage intern was allowed to drink alcohol at a farewell party on a veranda of the U.S. Capitol. A spokesman for Harris, Ryan Nawrocki, confirmed that the party took place but said aides in the office did not realize the intern, a senior in college, was under 21. When the incident was brought to light, Harris, a Republican, disciplined his chief of staff, Kevin Reigrut, though Nawrocki would not say what action was taken.

College nights have quietly returned to the Inner Harbor. Bourbon Street moved its college nights to the new Baltimore Soundstage earlier this month, the first time college nights have been held at the Inner Harbor since 2006, when they were banned over outcry from city and public officials about underage drinking. College nights at Bourbon Street were moved because the club is getting ready to close September 30. The last party was held September 1. General manager Sam Chaney said the parties will be held once a month instead of weekly, like at Bourbon Street.

Anyone who even remotely thinks that increasing the alcohol tax will reduce underage drinking is delusional (Alcohol tax: 50% increase is first in a generation, April 12). This is nothing more than another money grab by a legislature that won't stop spending and is out of touch. What is needed to stop teen drinking is more education about the damage that drinking can do coupled with increased parental supervision and involvement in the lives of our children. Stop sugar-coating this issue and call it what it is — another tax pure and simple.

Howard County police have charged 22 youths with underage drinking, saying officers caught them with alcohol at a Glenelg residence after a high school homecoming dance.The youths -- who were given written citations requiring them to appear in court -- were drinking in the basement of a home in the 14600 block of Mustang Path about 12: 45 a.m. Sunday after attending the Glenelg High School dance, police said.Police, who said they heard rumors at the dance about a party afterward, knocked on the door of the Mustang Path residence and an adult allowed them to search the house.

Operators of Merriweather Post Pavilion are facing a $500 fine for an underage drinking incident at a Kenny Chesney concert July 10 when an employee slipped two cups of beer to a friend while the beer stand manager stepped out. Howard police Detective Martin Johnson saw the incident. Acting on undisputed facts, the Howard County Council, acting as the liquor board, last week imposed a $250 fine for each infraction on Charm City Hospitality and licensees Julie Berla and Jerome and Lisa Gottlieb.

I applaud the courageous vote of the Maryland state legislature to raise the tax on alcoholic beverages. Aside from the obvious tax windfall, there is evidence from over 110 professional, peer-reviewed papers that such tax increases reduce underage alcohol use. As a pediatrician with a busy practice, I no longer ask teens if they drink. The Youth Risk Behavior Study in Maryland has shown that 82 percent of graduating seniors have used alcohol, and a quarter of them have engaged in binge drinking.

There is an annual ritual in the beer industry: every fall Anheuser-Busch raises its prices, usually in the range of 3-4 four percent. This increase occurs regardless of inflation and is a testament to the dominant position the makers of Budweiser hold in America's beer market. In his commentary in The Sun on Feb. 22 ( "'Dime a drink' tax would cost thousands of jobs" Pietro Di Pilato, a vice president of the world's largest liquor company, argues a dime a drink increase in the price of alcohol will cost the industry thousands of jobs.