Kentfield Teens Break Into Unoccupied Home For Halloween Party
KENTFIELD (CBS SF) - A large group of teens forced their way into a Kentfield house early Sunday morning for a party that included alcohol and marijuana, a California Highway Patrol sergeant said Monday.
None of the teens between 15 and 18 years old had permission to be there and neither the owner nor anyone associated with the owner was present, CHP Sgt. Marcus Bartholomew said.
When the CHP and Marin County sheriff's deputies arrived around 12:30 a.m. in response to a trespassing complaint, they found intoxicated minors hiding in the bushes near the Laurel Grove residence, Bartholomew said.
CHP officers detained a vehicle filled with teens in front of the house, and the officers found an open bottle of flavored vodka in the vehicle, Bartholomew said.
The 16-year-old driver was in violation of his provisional license by having underage passengers in the vehicle. A 15-year-old girl in the car was in possession of alcohol and a 16-year old boy who could not care for himself was taken home to his parents after the CHP could not reach them by phone, Bartholomew said.
Parents who were called to pick up the teens said they believed their children were "spending the night at a friend's house" and did not know they were out and about at that hour, Bartholomew said.
Bartholomew said incidents where teens drive around with their friends in violation of their first year's driving restrictions seem to happen every weekend.
"We also routinely find them in possession of marijuana and hard alcohol and under the influence of these substances," he said.
"In a majority of cases, teens are playing this age-old shell game with their parents regarding where they actually are at night, or who they say they are actually with," Bartholomew said.
"It is frustrating that it takes a substantial amount of time and resources to deal with this in the field, but we have to make sure these kids get back home safely," he said.
"We have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to underage drinking and drug use, and we are simply not going to release intoxicated minors to other minors, 'designated driver' or not," Bartholomew said.
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