Police: Mom Arrested For Supplying Keg To Teens At Putnam County Party
MAHOPAC, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A suburban mom was facing criminal charges Tuesday night after police said she threw a keg party for dozens of underage kids.
The idea of teens drinking at a party is nothing new, but when a mother buys the keg for her child and his friends, which is what police said happened inside a Putnam County home on Friday night, it's a crime.
"She admitted that it was her son's party and that she had given them a keg of beer," Carmel Police Chief Michael Johnson said.
The "she" is 49-year-old Catherine Apollonio, but coming to her defense was the man she lives with.
"I bought the damn keg. I bought it for a damn party, OK?" Paul Alexander said.
Alexander claims the underage drinkers used their own tap to get to the keg's contents.
Alexander: "I had the keg for my own personal party New Year's eve, and New Year's Day."
Hennessey: "And you're saying her son and friends accessed the keg?"
Alexander: "Yes."
Hennessey: "The day before?"
Alexander: "Yes."
Hennessey: "And no one in the house knew about this?"
Alexander: "She was sleeping, getting ready for work the next day."
While shouldering the blame may be admirable, police said Apollonio confessed.
"Apparently the party got out of hand. She didn't believe it would be that well attended," Chief Johnson said.
Police said 50 underage people were drinking in the basement. Neighbors said whatever was happening there was quiet.
When asked if Apollonio was being unfairly charged, neighbor Jack Fisher said, "Yes."
But it's still illegal.
"It's horrible. It's terrible for a mother to do that. I would never do that, ever," neighbor Sandy Giorgio said.
"It makes me worry that this kind of thing goes on all the time, all over the place, and it's not a good example to set for younger kids because they'll think it's OK to do," Roseann D'Amico added.
A lesson a Mahopac mom is learning the hard way. Police have charged Apollonio with 50 counts of "unlawfully dealing with a child". She's due in court at the end of the month.
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