Teen parties push the limit





Keeping our teens entertained and out of trouble has become a modern-day problem. In earlier times, boys and girls in their mid-to-late teens had to become adults quickly, by necessity. They took charge of family farms, learned trades at a young age and seemed mature, by today’s standards, by the time they were 18.

Many of today’s teens choose to idle their time with drugs, alcohol and other ill-advised behavior. A teenage boy barely old enough to shave drives home from a party, loaded on booze. Another takes the path toward drugs, her innocence lost forever.

Can young people make the transition to adulthood safely? Are parents powerless to keep their teens on the right track?

Yes, and no.

The kind of trouble teens can get into surfaced last weekend at the Chapter 8 Steak House and Lounge, a popular Agoura Hills venue that is periodically transformed into a teen dance club for 16- to 20-year-olds. A promoter rents the club and charges $20 to $40 a head. Only water bottles are sold at the Sunday night affairs and the event is supposed to be a safe way for young people to socialize.

But as reported in our page 1 story, proper chaperoning was lacking and when sheriff’s deputies staged a sting later in the evening, almost two dozen teens were cited for drug, alcohol and curfew violations. Illegal substances were consumed outside the club or smuggled inside using girls’ purses.

Stopping teens from driving under the influence is major part of the deputies’ operation.

At a previous event, deputies found a 14-year-old boy unconscious outside the club, suffering from alcohol poisoning. If an ambulance hadn’t been called the boy might have died.

Parents share some of the blame. Even though the Chapter 8 parties last until 1 a.m., they should know that in Agoura Hills, as in many local cities, the weekend curfew for minors is midnight. During the week it’s 10 p.m. Also, teens that have been licensed less than a year are not allowed to drive past 11 p.m., yet many still do.

Parents, do you know where your children are? Is anybody in charge here? These all-too-familiar questions should be heeded, not ignored.


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