Posted by Eugene Volokh:
"Criminalizing [Children's] Communion?"
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_03_15-2009_03_21.shtml#1237261141
The Arkansas House of Representatives just passed [1]An Act to Provide
Criminal Liability for a Social Host Who Knowingly Serves Alcohol to
Persons Under the Age of 21 ...:
3-3-219(a)(1) A person who exercises control over private property
shall not knowingly allow a person under twenty-one (21) years of
age who is not a child or ward of the person to:
(A) Consume alcohol on the private property; or
(B) Remain on the private property if the person under twenty-one
(21) years of age consumes an alcoholic beverage on the property.
(2) This subsection applies only to a person who is present and in
control of the private property at the time the consumption occurs.
(b)(1) A first violation of this section is a Class C misdemeanor.
(2) A second violation of this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
(3) A third or subsequent violation of this section is a Class D
felony.
But as my friend [2]Dan Greenberg, an Arkansas state legislator,
points out:
Does this bill give an incentive for unmonitored underage drinking
to occur? I think so, and I also think that the law would be better
if it went the other way -- that is, to give an incentive for an
adult to stick around and keep an eye on the problem, rather than
leave. I understand that a couple of teenagers sitting around
drinking beer is hardly an ideal situation, but this new bill makes
the problem much worse by discouraging adult monitoring of any
kind....
[Also,] I tend to think that a legal requirement to order a child
off your property [see (a)(1)(B)] has its own set of problems.
Maybe [the child] has a cell phone and can call for a ride, or
maybe she can walk home. I hope so, and I hope she hasn�t had much
to drink. And I hope it�s not too late at night -� especially once
the new law we voted for last week kicks in and it�s a ticketable
offense for a minor to drive from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. Maybe if she
has a car outside, her best bet is just to lock the doors and sleep
it off....
This will [also] be a big problem for some religious communities,
given that as far as I can tell we have just criminalized
children�s Communion. (This is a traditional Catholic practice in
which a child takes a tiny, ceremonial sip of wine.) Similar rites
take place in some Jewish, Episcopalian, and Lutheran congregations
-� and probably others, but I am just a lawyer and legislator and
not a scholar of comparative religions....
Finally, the problem this bill�s trying to solve is already
addressed in current state law. It�s already a criminal offense to
�give, procure, or otherwise furnish� alcohol to someone under 21
(and that law, unlike this one, exempts religious ceremonies). It�s
also a criminal offense to contribute to the delinquency of a
minor. Both of those offenses, already on the books, carry harsher
criminal penalties than this bill....
I spoke against this bill on the floor of the House. I wasn�t
successful....
After we voted, the bill�s sponsor came over and assured me that
the bill would be amended in the Senate to fix some of its
problems. I tend to think that the only way to fix this bill�s
problems is to run it through a shredder, incinerate the remains
and bury what�s left in a big hole.
References
1. http://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/assembly/2009/R/Bills/HB1586.pdf
2. http://www.thearkansasproject.com/criminalizing-communion/
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