WEST BATH, Maine — Police arrested a 21-year-old West Bath man and summoned 16 others late Saturday night for charges related to underage drinking, according to Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Brett Strout.
Strout said the unusually high number of summonses was partially because the party was being held at 145 New Meadows Road, Apartment D, on the building’s second floor. Randy Brewer, 21, who lives at the residence, was arrested on the Class D charge of furnishing a place for juveniles to consume alcohol and for allegedly violating conditions of release from a prior offense. Strout said he did not have any records that indicate what the prior offense was.
A 16-year-old male from Bath, in addition to being charged with possession of alcohol by a juvenile, also was summoned for possession of a usable amount of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. Police do not release the identities of offenders who are not yet 18 years old. Those older than age 18 summoned for possession of alcohol by a juvenile were Maxwell Colfer, 19, of Bath; Edward Grondin, 18, of Phippsburg; Holly Coffin, 19, of Harpswell; and Jason Johnson, 19, of Phippsburg.
The rest of the juveniles included males and females ages 15 to 17. Two were from Brunswick, one from Durham and eight from Bath.
According to Strout, the party was reported by a neighbor. When Deputies Matt Sharpe, Matt Shiers and Adam Baker arrived, they found a party in full swing in the second-floor apartment.
“A lot of times in these situations the kids try to take off,” said Strout, who added that was impossible in this case because the party was on the second floor and there was no escape route.
The three deputies worked for several hours to write summonses and contact the juveniles’ parents, who came to pick them up or made arrangements for their transport. All of the alleged offenders are scheduled for court hearings on May 7, though Strout said that might change for the juveniles, who are prosecuted through a different system from adults.
“We take this very seriously,” Strout said. “We enforce the law and make every effort to contact parents when we come across underage drinking parties. This is just another example of underage party-goers getting caught and jammed up for what starts out as a good time and becomes a long-term nightmare for them.”
Brewer was released from Two Bridges Regional Jail in Wiscasset on $500 unsecured bail after 3 a.m. Sunday, according to an officer at the jail.
Useless news, PARTY ON live your life not BIG brothers!
(Voice of Eric Cartman:) Lame!
All those summonses should just about cover the costs of the kegs for the Bath PD’s St. Patty’s party.
time to get the drinking age back to 18 where it ought to be! bring em out of hiding, stop wasting funds prosecuting people for what 98% of us have done, (cops included). support local business and keep the 18 and up crowd in full view rather than forcing them to sneak around!!
While I support the restriction against drinking by young teenagers, I do not support the restrictions against 18+ plus drinkers. If they are citizens (by virtue of their right to vote) and can serve in the military, then they should be allowed to drink. This restriction just serves to Blur age laws, and put 21-year-olds in the same legal space as 16-year-olds.