Juvenile Justice Information Exchange (https://jjie.org/tag/underage-drinking/page/2/)
High schoolers have produced some pretty creative videos about underage drinking and parent responsibilities. They are posted on SchoolTube. The Cobb Alcohol Taskforce is sponsoring a Youth PSA Contest and it’s time for you to vote for your favorite one. The video with the highest number of views will win a $300 prize. There will also be a runner up and a third place winner. Some of these teens have pulled out all the stops.
There’s a new, online training course on how to reduce underage alcohol sales by conducting compliance investigations of alcohol retailers. The course is free and offered by Fox Valley Technical College's Underage Drinking Enforcement Training Center. The course, Conducting Compliance Check Operations, is four hours long and provides rationales for investigating establishments that sell alcohol. If you take the course, you’ll be able to:
Understand issues related to underage drinking and how retailers make alcohol available to teens. Implement step-by-step guidelines for carrying out compliance investigations.
On the heels of the fight to keep caffeine-packed alcoholic “energy drinks” out of the hands of young people, a new health concern is emerging over a new product -- whipped cream with a twist. Cans of flavored alcohol-infused whipped cream, yes whipped cream, with names like Cream and Whipped Lightening have been popping up on local liquor store shelves. Much like the alcoholic energy drinks that the Federal Drug Administration threatened to ban in November (the maker of the controversial Four Loko brand has agreed to remove caffeine and two other ingredients, guarana and taurine), the toppings come in flavors like raspberry, German chocolate, cherry, Amaretto, caramel and vanilla flavors, which are especially inviting to young people. Similarly these so-called “whipahols” also pack a powerful punch at 15 percent alcohol, about 30-proof. Depending on how much is consumed, some experts contend, that can be about three times the amount found in beer.
November 12, 2010, Marietta, GA – Cobb Alcohol Taskforce is proud to announce that Cobb Alcohol Taskforce Coordinator, Cathy Finck, was awarded the Prevention Pioneer in Georgia Award. The award was given by the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health, Developmental Disabilities and Addictive Diseases at a recent 4th Annual Georgia School of Addiction Studies at a conference recently held in Savannah, Georgia. The award was given to Finck and five of her peers in acknowledgement of their continual dedication and contributions to prevention in Georgia.
The award ceremony included a brief recap of Cathy Finck’s career in prevention:
“Cathy Finck has worked in the substance abuse field for 22 years and her experience mirrors the theme of this year’s conference…from Prevention to Treatment to Recovery. Cathy has pioneered efforts for involving Georgia families in substance abuse prevention, treatment and recovery systems and services. Cathy has consulted with many organizations on substance abuse related issues for children and families, community mobilization and coalition building, environmental system change, strategic planning and public policy. Some of the organizations Cathy has worked with over the years are: Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration, Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Parent Resources & Information for Drug Education, Georgia Department of Human Resources, Georgia Council on Substance Abuse, Georgia Children and Youth Coordinating Council, The Council on Alcohol and Drugs, Cobb County Safe and Drug-free Schools’ Prevention Intervention Center, National Families in Action and Cobb Community Collaborative. Currently Cathy serves as Coordinator for the Cobb Alcohol Taskforce, as 2nd Vice President for the Georgia Coalition to Prevent Underage Drinking, and as a SAMSHA Consultant for the Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Substance Abuse State Infrastructure Grants.”
About the Cobb Alcohol Taskforce - Cobb Alcohol Taskforce is an alliance of individuals and organizations which mobilizes and challenges Cobb County adults to reduce underage drinking and youth binge drinking, by advancing strategic enforcement, policy and education goals.
Kids who begin drinking at 14 or younger are nearly twice as likely to be dependent on alcohol as those who begin drinking between 15 and 17. They are six times more likely to become alcoholics than people who wait until the legal age of 21 to start drinking, according to a new report from the Center for Substance Abuse Research. These findings come from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health. The report goes on to suggest that alcohol education and prevention efforts start as early as middle school. JJIE.org reports today on the issue of alcoholic energy drinks, sometimes called 'cocaine in a can.' The companies that make these drinks often target teens in their advertising.
If a young person under 21 drinks on your property, you could be legally responsible even if you didn’t provide the alcohol under a new social host ordinance proposed by the Cobb Alcohol Taskforce. The Taskforce is making a presentation at the Cobb Municipal Association meeting on October 12 to propose that jurisdictions adopt social host ordinances. They hope to target Cobb County and six cities including Acworth, Austell, Kennesaw, Marietta, Powder Springs, and Smyrna. “The community has been pretty good about holding kids fairly accountable for underage drinking,” said Cathy Fink, the Cobb Alcohol Taskforce coordinator. “Private parties are the primary source of underage drinking and the community is having trouble holding adults accountable for providing places for minors to drink.”
Under current law, police can charge underage drinkers with possession or consumption of alcohol and an adult can be charged with furnishing alcohol to a minor.