ABC Says: Up to 1 Year in Jail, $2,500 in Fines for Providing Minors with Alcohol

By: Lowell
Published On: 1/23/2007 12:59:23 AM

According to Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC):

*"It is illegal for anyone under 21 to possess any alcoholic beverages."

*"...it is against state law to allow (aid or abet) underage persons to possess or consume alcohol. This is a Class 1 misdemeanor and is punishable by up to one year in jail and/or a $2,500 fine. Purchasing, aiding and abetting or giving alcohol to minors is against the law.

Uh, Mr. Virginia Attorney General?  Aren't you supposed to know the laws of Virginia?!?  And now that you've (apparently) broken one of them (by "aiding and abeting giving alcohol to minors", what penalty do you think you deserve?
[UPDATE: It gets better (or worse, depending on how you look at it).  Check this out:

Virginia lawmakers are in the process of cracking down on underage drinking and adults who facilitate it.

[...]

"It is important that adults be held responsible for providing alcohol to those under 21," Albo said. "There is no excuse for the accidents and deaths associated with underage drinking. I am confident that the passage of these bills will make Virginia kids safer, and I hope they will receive the same enthusiastic support from the full House and Senate that they received in sub-committee and committee."

Currently, adults who give alcohol to those who are underage cannot be held responsible for any illegal activities committed by the underage persons while they were intoxicated. Albo's bill would hold both the adult and the underage person responsible.

Ha, that's priceless!]

[UPDATE #2: It gets even better; check this out: "Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell today joined The Century Council to announce two statewide initiatives to fight underage drinking in Virginia..." McDonnell is quoted as saying:

It is so important that we help children to make the right decisions in their lives...By providing them with information, and initiating conversations about the dangers of drinking, we can help prepare children to make the right choices in order to ensure that they have bright and healthy futures.
Ha.]

Comments



...wow n/t (pitin - 1/23/2007 2:07:45 AM)


I wonder ...... (MV Democrat - 1/23/2007 7:33:45 AM)
What the position of the Chair of the Courts of Justice Committee was on that bill because that bill had to go through that committee. 

Oh wait, Bob McDonnell chaired that committee in 2005.  I'm sure he voted against it, right?



McDonnell was one of 6 delegates (Lowell - 1/23/2007 7:43:12 AM)
who voted no on the Albo bill (HB 2791 Alcoholic beverages; purchasing for underage, penalty).  In the Senate, the vote was unanimous (38-0).  HB 2791, which  "Allows the court to suspend for up to one year the driver's license of someone who purchases alcohol for someone who is underage, intoxicated, or interdicted."  The bill was signed by Governor Warner and became effective on July 1, 2005.


McDonnell voted yes on HB 2255 (Lowell - 1/23/2007 7:49:11 AM)
...a bill sponsored by Robert B. Bell (R-58) which "criminalizes underage consumption and punishes anyone who aids or assists in providing alcohol to an underage person with a Class 1 misdemeanor."  The bill was signed into law by Governor Warner on 3/28/05 and took effect on 7/1/05.


He also voted FOR it earlier (MV Democrat - 1/23/2007 9:31:58 AM)
Both out of Committee:
http://leg1.state.va...

And on the House floor:
http://leg1.state.va...

After the Senate toned it down, he voted against it.  Maybe he was reserving his right to reconsider or didn't like something Senate did to the bill, but he voted for it, the first time through his committee.

The one he voted for was harsher on adults providing alcohol for minors. 

http://leg1.state.va...



McDonnell was for it before (Lowell - 1/23/2007 9:39:34 AM)
he was against it, in other words? :)


That's strange (MV Democrat - 1/23/2007 9:07:37 AM)
I wonder why McDonnell voted no.  He's usually up there regulating morality.


Albo... (Eric - 1/23/2007 8:59:15 AM)
great quote from Del. Albo to further emphasize the hypocrisy of this party.  Not only because of what McDonnell is doing (and has done), but because of Albo himself.  Albo is playing for both sides on many alcohol related issues - he's a law & order delegate pushing tough drinking laws when he's in Richmond and then he switches teams to become a lawyer who specializes in defending alcohol related cases in NOVA. 

I don't believe there is anything illegal about what Albo's doing - but it sure as hell should be.



That's why (MV Democrat - 1/23/2007 9:06:44 AM)
Albo Must Go - www.albomustgo.com


Where does McDonnell live with this staement (Gordie - 1/23/2007 9:18:35 AM)
"It is so important that we help children to make the right decisions in their lives...By providing them with information, and initiating conversations about the dangers of drinking, we can help prepare children to make the right choices in order to ensure that they have bright and healthy futures".

Most middle schools and some elementray schools have "Dare" programs NOW. But I must say it ends at home, because most teenage drinkers get threir permission to drink alcohol at home, by watching their parents drink and possibly get drunk.