Whether at a party or behind the wheel, teen-agers, alcohol and drugs don't mix. Ignore this advice and suffer the consequences.
That was the message presented Monday to some 350 eighth-graders at Rocky Run Middle School by Fairfax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Judge Gayl Carr and Dr. Mike Altieri, chief of pediatrics at Inova Fairfax Hospital. Sponsoring the program was the Chantilly Community Coalition (for safe and drug-free kids).
"Some of the worst things I've seen didn't have to happen," said Altieri. "What drug kills the most kids? Alcohol." He discussed the medical results of drinking, and Carr spoke about its legal ramifications.
"If you have just a sip of alcohol and are under age 21, have you violated the law?" she asked the students. Most said 'no,' but Carr told them they were wrong. "If you're at a game Friday night and someone hands you a can of beer and says, 'Just take a sip,' you'd better give it some serious thought," she said. "Virginia is a zero-tolerance state."
Adults, too, must obey the rules, said Carr. "If I drink six glasses of wine at lunch, drive and get stopped by a police officer, can I say, 'But it's OK — I'm over 21?' No, it isn't OK — even if you're not drunk."
She asked students if they'd hold someone's purse, backpack or wallet without knowing what's in it, and she said they shouldn't. "It could contain marijuana, and the school resource officer could arrest you," said Carr. "Who'll get busted — the [owner] or you? You, for possession of marijuana."
"After a game, you're at McDonald's and parked in a car," said the judge. "The people in front have a beer, and you're in back, just tryin' to eat your Big Mac. You don't know [that] the passenger has opened one of the beers and put it by your feet. A police officer shines a light in and sees the six-pack, notices the driver reeks of alcohol, his eyes are glazed and his speech is a little bit slurred. Then he sees the beer by your feet."
"Who's going to jail — all four people, just the two front passengers or only you?" asked Carr. "All four; the officers let the judge figure out [who's guilty]. Therefore, you should know who you're around and what they're doing. You may be doing everything legal and proper, but the people you're hanging out with aren't."
She told the students that they could go to jail for possession of alcohol. "How long depends on how bad it is," she said. "If we can't find your parents, you could spend the whole weekend in jail." Then, if they're found guilty in court, some of the consequences are: Jail, drug treatment or education, probation, a fine and community service.
"And because, in Virginia, we're a 'use and lose' state, the judge must suspend your privilege to drive," said Carr. "And even if you don't have a driver's permit now, the judge could suspend your driving privileges in the future, when you get [one]." Furthermore, she said, "If an under-age person is caught drinking and driving more than once, what happens? Bring your toothbrush, you're going to jail."
She asked the students what they'd do if they're at a party and there are alcohol and drugs. "Do you stay at that party?" asked Carr. "What do you do when somebody puts that beer in your face and says, 'Try it — it's not gonna hurt you?' Either tell them it makes you sick or that you've got too much to lose — band, sports, college, etc. — and you don't want to take the risk."
When they apply for jobs, she said, employers will want to know if they've been arrested. And on applications for scholarships or loans, the federal government will ask if they've had drug or alcohol convictions. Carr said those are the social consequences, and she warned students not to believe the TV beer-commercial hype.
"There's nothing wrong with having fun, but choose the kind that is legal and doesn't put you at harm," she said. "Think about what you're doing so you don't have to see me in a courtroom or have your hopes and dreams derailed."
Carr also advised them to cover their beverage glass at parties and not to put it down, walk away, return and drink it. In the interim, she said, it could be laced with the date-rape drug. When a few boys laughed, she said it's not funny: "Taking advantage of a girl [can mean] 20 years in the penitentiary. Girls, be safe, be aware."
Altieri told the students their lives are a series of decisions and they have to weigh the pros and cons of what's good and bad for them. Then he spoke of a drinking-and-driving incident, several years ago, where the driver and passenger — both Langley High students — were killed.
"The legal blood-alcohol level for adults is .08 percent," he said. "For you guys, it's zero." He said the higher the blood-alcohol level, the more a person is impaired, and he explained the effects at various levels: "At .06 percent, you have difficulty controlling your muscles and your inhibitions are released — you feel like you can do anything. And you can reach [this level] in one beer."
Altieri said blood-alcohol level depends on "how much you drink, how fast, how big your body is and what you eat along with it. Chugging it can kill you — alcohol's absorbed very rapidly."
At .09 percent, people start getting sick. Additionally, said Altieri: "It impairs your judgment — 'I can make that light; I can beat that car' — and it takes six hours for your body to metabolize [get rid of] it."
At .15 percent — double the legal limit — people start staggering and become incoherent. And it takes eight hours for the body to rid itself of that much alcohol. At .30, said the doctor, "You don't even remember what happened to you. I've seen girls come into the ER who were this drunk and were raped — and didn't have a clue what happened to them. So there can be consequences other than what happens in a car."
At .40 percent, the person is unconscious. "We've had to put people [at this level] on respirators," said Altieri. About all the body can handle is .50 percent, and death often results. He showed slides of a demolished car, a boy whose leg was amputated because of a drunk-driving crash and devastated parents in a hospital consultation-room.
"I can't tell you how many times I've had to tell parents, 'We did everything we could, but I can't save your son or daughter,'" said Altieri. "And it didn't have to happen." Finally, he told the students no one can force them to make wise decisions: "It has to come from within you."