Public Service Announcement
Las Animas County Sheriff’s Office
Sheriff Derek Navarette
Undersheriff Reynaldo Santistevan
Captain Rick Mangino
Addressing Under Aged Drinking
18-6-701 Contributing To The Delinquency Of A Minor
18-6-401 Child Abuse
Past generations at times had viewed under-aged drinking as a “thing a child was going through”. In recent years it has been discovered that many under-aged drinkers have ended up with serious health issues, and at times an early death as a result of their being provided alcoholic beverages by adults.
Should a person under the legal age for consumption of alcohol suffer lasting physical impairment or loss of life, it could result in the individual who had provided the alcohol being criminally charged for providing the alcoholic beverage to the under-aged person whether their own child or not. The person providing the alcohol or hosting an event in which underage persons are known to be attending could be arrested and charged with Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor, Child abuse, or both.
Things to consider prior to having a social function are: Is there a possibility of persons under the legal age for consuming alcohol being present at my function, if so how will the alcoholic beverages be monitored? Are attendees known to me, if not will they be asked to leave the function?
An adult’s failure to make certain that a known juvenile refrains from consuming alcohol at their function could result in being criminally charged and possible civil litigations in a civil court.
