Coalition to combat underage, excessive drinking
PORTLAND — Police and local business owners will announce a new partnership Thursday to curb excessive and underage drinking.
Police Chief James Craig will release details at a press conference at 3 p.m in Monument Square.
In addition to police, the initiative will involve local bar owners, the Portland Nightlife Oversight Committee and 21 Reasons, a coalition to prevent underage drinking.
Announcement of the effort follows the death of Eric Benson, a Farmington man who was assaulted in Monument Square early Sunday morning, shortly after the city's bars closed.
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3 COMMENTS
Eric said...
So are any of the bars that served googins, who is 20, have any repercussions. I think their licenses should be pulled, but probably nothing will happen. Very sad, underage drinking is the norm at a lot of the bars in the old port
May 26, 2010 at 1:59 PM Report abuse
SteveCScharf said...
Announcement of the effort follows the death of Eric Benson, a Farmington man who was assaulted in Monument Square early Sunday morning, [by an underage patron] shortly after the city's bars closed.
May 26, 2010 at 1:59 PM Report abuse
Chew said...
The reason the person is "under age" is because the drinking age is 21 instead of the 18-19 it was back in the 1970s... I'm all for some sort of positive thinking about ways to reduce violence and accidents due to drinking (regardless of age), and I am even more in favor of figuring out how to lessen family violence which is all too often alcohol related. One of the effects of having a 21 year old drinking age when a person is supposed to be an adult at 18 is that "adults" supposedly can have adult beverages and the 21 year old drinking age discourages younger adults from obeying laws that seem (to them) frivolous.
May 26, 2010 at 2:36 PM Report abuse