Pasadena Star News supports 9-1-1 immunity bill
Posted on 03. Mar, 2010 by kchristieh in politics
The Pasadena Star News supports AB 1999, the 9-1-1 Immunity bill introduced by Assemblyman Anthony Portantino.
To encourage getting help, we support the granting of immunity from criminal prosecution to underage drinkers who call for help for a friend and then stay until medical help arrives.
Under current law, underage drinkers who call 9-1-1 for someone else can be prosecuted themselves. Under a bill by Pasadena Assemblyman Anthony Portantino, the threat of prosecution – a barrier to getting medical attention for a friend – is removed.
They sum it up especially well at the end:
It shouldn’t be a crime to get help for a friend.
At our recent meeting, the La Canada High School PTSA also voted to endorse this bill. Hopefully others will join in, and it will pass in time to save some lives.
Links:
Assemblymember Portantino introduces 911 Immunity bill
Posted on 18. Feb, 2010 by kchristieh in politics
Imagine this: Your underage child is at a party, and like many of his peers, quaffs a few too many brewskis. He manages to remain standing, but one of his buddies falls unconscious on the couch. As the law now stands, if your child calls 911 for his friend, your child could be arrested for the misdemeanor of underage drinking. Therefore, he might decide not to risk calling 911, and hope that his friend “sleeps it off.” That decision could prove deadly. Unfortunately, this decision is made every week in California, sometimes with disastrous results.
California Assemblymember Anthony Portantino has introduced AB 1999 in order to remedy this situation and give young people the incentive to help a friend in need of emergency help. I’d like to think I helped make this happen, as about a month ago I forwarded him an LA Times opinion piece that had been forwarded to me which suggested adopting 911 immunity legislation. I’m proud that our Assemblyman is taking the lead on this. We’d all like to hope that this situation will never occur, but we need to face reality and make sure that when it does, young people have the incentive to do the right thing and help each other out.
Here’s his press release about it:
Assemblymember Portantino Puts Public Safety First With his ‘911 Immunity’ Legislation
Assembly Bill 1999 would protect children seeking assistance for underage drinking.
SACRAMENTO, CA- Assemblymember Anthony Portantino (D- La Cañada Flintridge) introduced AB which would protect children engaged in underaged drinking from being prosecuted for seeking medical attention.
This bill would protect an underage drinker, or one or two peers working in concert, who seek emergency medical attention due to alcohol poisoning by granting immunity from criminal prosecution. The immunity could only be granted to the victim and the one or two underage peers acting in concert if they were the original callers and stayed at the scene until the authorities arrived.
“Let me be clear, this bill does not condone underage drinking,” says Assemblymember Portantino. “What it does is decrease barriers for young people that need emergency medical care but are scared to call because they made a mistake.”
Over the last year, there have been several underage Californians that have died due to suspected alcohol poisoning that may have benefited from this law. Friends of the deceased teens have said that they were scared to call for help because they did not want to get in legal trouble.
“This law is about saving lives,” Assemblymember Portantino continued. “It is important that we make sure young people are getting the medical care they need regardless of the circumstances. After they are safe, the consequences of the young person’s actions will be between him or her and their parents.”
A few other states have adopted similar “911 Immunity” laws, and in each there has had bi-partisan support. If this proposal is adopted, California would join Colorado, New Jersey, and Texas in giving underage drinkers a safe way to call for help.
“Underage drinking is a constant problem that we need to continue to improve on, but this proposal is a harm reduction measure that will make calling 911 easier for underage people that really need it,” Assemblymember Portantino concluded.
The bill reads as follows:
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 25662.5 is added to the Business and Professions Code, to read:
25662.5.
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, it shall not be a crime for a person under the age of 21 years and one or two other persons to knowingly possess or knowingly consume one or more alcoholic beverages if all of the following circumstances exist:
(1) One of the persons under the age of 21 years called 9-1-1 and reported that another person under the age of 21 years was in need of medical assistance due to alcohol consumption.
(2) The person under the age of 21 years was the first person to make the 9-1-1 report.
(3) The person under the age of 21 years and, if applicable, one or two other persons acting in concert with the person under the age of 21 years who made the 9-1-1 report remained on the scene with the person under the age of 21 years in need of medical assistance until assistance arrived and cooperated with medical assistance and law enforcement personnel on the scene.
(b) Notwithstanding any other law, it shall not be a crime for the person under the age of 21 years who received medical assistance as provided in subdivision (a) to knowingly possess or knowingly consume one or more alcoholic beverages on private
20 property.
(c) Nothing in this section shall affect liability for any offense that involves activities made dangerous by the consumption of alcohol, including, but not limited to, violations of Section 23152 of the Vehicle code.
Lessons aren’t learned after Orinda teen dies
Posted on 23. Nov, 2009 by kchristieh in parenting
Did you know that if there’s underage drinking at your house, you’re liable even if you don’t know about it or aren’t home? And that if the kids paid to attend the party, you’re in even more trouble?
Those were some of the points brought up by Will Moffitt at our September PTSA meeting, and those points are driven home in the lead article in today’s LA Times article, “A teen party, a mysterious death — and a town’s unanswered grief,” about a teen boy in Orinda who died after drinking beer at a party he paid to attend at a home where the parents weren’t present. It’s a very sad story, and could easily happen in our fair city. My heart goes out to everyone involved.
Two points in the article particularly struck me. The first was this paragraph:
Giving underage drinkers immunity from prosecution for calling 911 might encourage them to summon help, Klingman said. Many colleges and at least two states, Colorado and New Jersey, provide immunity as a way to prevent alcohol-related deaths.
I LOVE this idea. Kids see all sorts of dangerous things, but are often afraid to tell because they don’t want to get in trouble or be branded as “tattletales.” Take away the disincentives. If something dangerous is happening, they shouldn’t be afraid to seek help.
The second was this statement by the Orinda Chief of Police:
“Apparently someone dying at a party has not affected their partying,” he said. But he added that some teens do go to parties and abstain. The answer may lie in finding out why, he said.
It’s sad that this hasn’t affected teen partying practices. If it had, at least some good would have come of this tragedy, much like it did when Crescenta Valley high school formed its Prom Plus event after one of their students was shot.
I was particularly intrigued by the second part of his statement, where he thinks the answer to changing the partying culture may be found by figuring out why some teens who attend parties choose to abstain. It’s like studying someone with the HIV virus who doesn’t get AIDS: find out what makes them immune to it, and see if you can replicate it in others.
Has anyone ever tried this? Lately? Here?
I’m not a “cool” parent, but that’s the way I like it
Posted on 14. Feb, 2009 by kchristieh in my life, parenting, things that bug me
Many years ago, I was awakened in the middle of the night by shouting in front of our house. I was amazed to see what looked like a scene out of “West Side Story,” where the Sharks and the Jets square off against each other. I called 911, and was taken aback when the operator asked if there were any weapons involved. But then, a few seconds later, I saw a guy pull a knife out of his back pocket. The Sheriff’s deputies soon arrived, and the party that these people had spilled out of broke up.
Here’s the most amazing part: the next thing I saw was the father from the house the party was at step out of his side door and dump a bunch of bottles into his recycling bin! Yes indeed, the parents had been home the whole time. The father was in his bathrobe, so he’d probably been holed up in his bedroom, but he had to have had a clue about what was going on.
Powder Springs, Georgia police allege that 43-year-old Kecia Evangela Whitfield also had a clue about what was going on the night of Jan. 24th. She allegedly served alcohol to her stepson and his friends, one of whom, 16-year-old Garrett Reed, subsequently crashed his car into an oncoming vehicle and died. She’s been charged with serving alcohol to a minor and reckless conduct, and could wind up spending a year in jail and thousands of dollars in fines.
Why would a parent (or stepparent) do that? Are they trying to be “cool”? Do they think “everyone” does it? Are they just trying to protect their own child by letting him drink at home, even as they endanger the lives of the other children and people on the road?
I don’t understand the logic here. Please be assured that if your child ever visits my house, I’ll be doing everything in my power to make sure this doesn’t happen.
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