Morris Township police have charged a homeowner with making his house available for a drinking party attended by up to 80 youths last Friday.
The participants hailed from Morristown High School, Bernardsville High School, Morristown Beard School, Seton Hall Preparatory School and Shepard Preparatory School, according to Police Chief Mark DiCarlo.
Sixty-nine were identified as juveniles, two were 18, and others ran from the Pembroke Road home and eluded police.
The homeowner, Cesar Quispe, was home at the time and told police he was unaware of the party, DiCarlo said in a statement.
If convicted of the disorderly person’s offense, Quispe could face 6 months in jail and fines, the chief said.
While no injuries were reported, underage drinking has numerous public safety and health risks, and can jeopardize students’ college prospects, DiCarlo said. He urged parents to “please be responsible and assure our youth are positively influenced and kept safe from potential dangerous situations.”
Here is the full statement.
From Morris Township Police Chief Mark DiCarlo:
Morris Township Police respond to large underage drinking party.
On Friday, Feb. 23, 2019, Patrols responded to a Morris Township residence for the report of a juvenile drinking party.
Patrols quickly discovered “an underage drinking party” which was attended by approximately 70-80 individuals. Some of the attendees ran from the scene and were not located by patrol.
All of the individuals were determined to be under the legal drinking age of 21. Sixty nine (69) of the party goers were identified as juveniles, under the age of 18. Two (2) of the party goers were identified as 18 years old.
The homeowner, identified as Cesar Quispe, from Pembroke Place, was home at the time and stated he was unaware of the party.
Mr. Quispe was later charged with a disorderly person’s offense of “Making property available for underage consumption of alcohol.” A disorderly Person’s Offense, if found guilty, may pose a penalty of not more than 6 months in jail, probation and a monetary fine.
The juveniles were from five different high schools identified as Morristown High School, Bernardsville High School, Morristown Beard School, Seton Hall Preparatory School and Shepard Preparatory School.
At this particular incident, there were no injuries or medical emergencies involving the individuals. Unfortunately, this is not always the case and the initial alert to police is the dispatch to a medical emergency involving one of the attendees.
Besides the health risk involving underage drinking and associated offenses, there are usually other social implications which could include educational institution punishment, potential criminal record, and loss of college opportunity.
Parents are also reminded that there are criminal as well as potential civil punishments for providing alcohol to minors. Please be responsible and assure our youth are positively influenced and kept safe from potential dangerous situations.
This is just FALSE!!