Should Parents Be Liable For Boozing Teens?

Another Newsweek article on parents supplying alcohol to teens:

Elisa Kelly thought she was doing the right thing when she bought $340 worth of beer and liquor for her 16-year-old son and more than 20 of his friends. In exchange for the booze, Kelly's son agreed that all his pals would sleep over at his birthday party. That, in the mind of the 42-year-old mother of two, was the best way to keep the underage revelers from drinking and driving. And, she says, none of the kids who came to her Earlysville, Va., home got hurt. But someone is indeed paying the price—Kelly herself went to jail this week to serve a 27-month sentence for providing alcohol to minors.

Her conviction raises some uncomfortable questions for parents as another season of alcohol-fueled graduation parties gets under way. Many communities around the country are imposing new or tougher “social host” laws that make parents legally responsible if underage guests drink at their homes. In some cases, the adults can be charged even if they weren't aware of the illegal imbibing on their property. Penalties range from probation to jail time and fines up to $5,000 depending on the circumstances and prevailing laws that determine if the offense is a misdemeanor, felony or violation of civil laws.

Read the rest here.