Bill on Teen Alcohol, Drug Abuse Clears Senate

The Senate on Tuesday approved and sent to the Assembly legislation that would allow judges to suspend the driver’s licenses of those under 21 who are convicted of drunk driving or of illegal use of drugs or alcohol even if they were not in a car.

The measure passed 21 to 4, getting the bare majority of the full Senate membership necessary to send it to the Assembly.

Opponents fought the bill on grounds that the measure would impose a harsher penalty on youths than is handed out to adults for similar offenses.

The bill’s author, Sen. Art Torres (D-Los Angeles), noted, however, that adults frequently are put in jail for those offenses, a punishment that he said is unacceptable for minors.

Torres, in introducing the bill, called the legislation an “innovative approach” to the longstanding problem of dealing with teen-age drinkers and drug abusers.

“There is a problem out there that we need to address and confront,” Torres said. “The only way that I can see that we can do that is by laying out a very clear message: If you’re drinking and you’re taking drugs and the principal catches you, you could lose your driving privileges. Kids want to drive a car more than anything else.”

In addition to providing for a one-year suspension of a license for a drinking driver, the bill would place a youth’s license in jeopardy even if the alcohol or drug offense is unrelated to driving. For example, a minor could have his license suspended if he is found sitting under a tree drinking a beer or using some other drug on a school campus.

The legislation also requires school officials to report alcohol and drug offenses to law enforcement authorities.

Existing law allows courts to suspend or restrict the driver’s license of any youth under 18 who is convicted of drunk driving. A key change proposed by the legislation is to change the age limit to 21.

The proposed penalties go further than the law relating to adults. Adults guilty of a first drunk driving offense are subject to jail time, fines and suspension of their driver’s licenses for up to six months. A person’s driving privilege is not affected if he or she is convicted of being drunk in a public place.

Numerous organizations fighting drug and alcohol abuse support the legislation, among them Californians for a Drug Free Youth, the group that Torres said proposed the bill.

Carla Lowe, who pushed for the bill on behalf of the group, said the bill “will put the sting where it hurts. It will give our kids a believable excuse for not partying that will be acceptable to their peers without appearing to wimp out.”

Other groups backing the legislation are Parents against Drugs and Alcohol, Parents Who Care, the California Council on Alcohol Problems and the Committee on Moral Concerns, among others.

One group was reported as opposing the bill--the American Civil Liberties Union.