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« Sen. Clinton coming to fundraiser in R.I., Sept. 27 | Today | Update: Thunderstorms leave mark on northern R.I. » July 30, 2007Judge: Send teen drinking/drug cases to Family CourtPROVIDENCE -- Prompted in part by the recent death of a Barrington teenager, Family Court Chief Judge Jeremiah S. Jeremiah Jr. today asked police chiefs to refer teen drinking and drug charges to Family Court rather than to local juvenile hearing boards. Jeremiah said the proposal is not meant as a criticism of the hearing boards, which handle juvenile cases in 33 of the 39 cities and towns in Rhode Island. Rather, he said, Family Court can offer more services to deal with the kind of problems highlighted by the charges levied against a Barrington teenager following the death of his classmate on July 17. Patrick Murphy, 17, had been riding a kneeboard pulled by a boat on the Barrington River when he disappeared. Authorities say Murphy was struck and slashed by something sharp, probably a propeller. The driver of the boat, Ryan A. Greenberg, 17, has been charged with reckless boating, death resulting; refusing to take a Breathalyzer test; and underage possession of alcohol. Greenberg has entered not guilty pleas. Jeremiah noted the Barrington police broke up a house party with 35 to 40 teens just nine hours after Murphy’s memorial service on Thursday. Four teens were charged with underage drinking. “It appears they are still drinking in Barrington,” Jeremiah said. “The parents have to take responsibility.” Jeremiah sent letters to police chiefs throughout the state, saying, “As of Aug. 1, 2007, I am respectfully requesting that all wayward alcohol and drug charges be referred to the Rhode Island Family Court instead of your local juvenile hearing board.” Now, when juveniles face first offenses, police chiefs may send those cases to local juvenile hearing boards or to Family Court. So Family Court often handles cases involving second offenses and more serious charges. Instead, Jeremiah is asking police chiefs to send Family Court all alcohol and drug cases that include “wayward” charges -- the juvenile equivalent of adult misdemeanor charges. Wayward charges could include possession of alcohol by a minor or an alcohol-related charge of disorderly conduct, Family Court officials said. “The Family Court has both staff and specialized programs in place to effectively and efficiently handle this serious problem facing our youth throughout the state,” Jeremiah wrote. “Therefore, I am asking that all wayward alcohol and drug charges be referred directly to Family Court to assure that this problem is managed in a standardized way statewide.” -- Journal staff writer Edward Fitzpatrick Posted by Mike McKinney Commentsfred | July 30, 2007 5:30 PM link Well, they may as well move the Family Court to Barrington-Providence can't handle all the extra traffic this will create. francine | July 30, 2007 7:21 PM link So you would not only arrest teens who drink alcohol but also the teens not drinking who are nearby? Is it just teens who are held criminally responsible for others' actions or would you like to hold adults to this same standard? Have you considered education as opposed to meaningless arrests as an appropriate response? James Powderly, Defense Attorney | July 30, 2007 9:00 PM link Where I grew up the cops would take everyone into custody, process them at the station, call their parents and have them picked up. Of course where and when I grew up parents CARED about what their kids were up to and the punishment a parent was going to hand down would likely be FAR worse than one the justice system was going to impose. These Barrington parents might as well be handing their kids loaded guns and painting targets on their backs. Patrick | July 31, 2007 2:13 PM link Post a commentPlease be civil. Vicious comments, personal attacks and profanity won't be published. Name and email are required; email address will not publish. |
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ProJo 9 to 5 News Blog
Oct 2005 - March 2006
The Barrington chief of police is always talking about how he's cracking down on teens who are drinking... but then, when they break up a party fo "35 to 40 teens", only four are charged?? Where I grew up in MA, every single teen would be charged for drinking if they had been at a party where there was alcohol-- and yes, this was a huge disincentive to drink.