D.C. Council Members Mary Cheh and Kwame Brown Tuesday stripped a provision from a bill that sought to allow minors caught in city bars with alcohol to be charged with a crime.
Cheh, D-Ward 3, and Brown, D-at large, ignored pleas by Jim Graham, D-Ward 1, chair of the Committee on Public Works and the Environment, to keep the legislation intact. Graham is seeking to prevent children under 18 from entering nightclubs following the January shooting death of 17-year-old Taleisha Ford at a U Street Bar. At present, there is no law preventing minors from being in District bars.
Cheh said she worried that imposing criminal charges on minors would “traumatize” them by exposing them to a lengthy legal process. Graham disagreed.
“Young people have gotten the message that it’s OK to drink,” he said.
Under D.C. law, minors caught drinking alcohol in city bars can be fined up to $300 and have their driving privileges suspended for 90 days for their first offense. For a third offense, minors can be fined up to $1,000 and have their licenses suspended for up to a year.
But those fines are never imposed, Cheh and Brown said. Neither knew why.
An Alcohol Beverage Regulation Administration official could not be reached.
“Let’s do the job that’s been set before us already,” Cheh said.
Graham’s bill would allow children under age 18 to be in nightclubs if they are accompanied by a parent, or are a paid employee or a performer providing entertainment. Clubs that cater to underage crowds, including music venues, would be eligible to apply for an “underage endorsement” if a written security plan is approved.
