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 New Secret Shopper Scam
The Bakersfield Police Department recently sent a release informing the community of a new scam to the area. This variation of the lottery-counterfeit check scam involves letters notifying the victim they have been selected as a secret shopper. The letter is accompanied by a check and a money order for several thousand dollars. The victim is told to cash the money order and keep a portion as payment for their services as a secret shopper. The remainder of the money order is instructed to be sent via Western Union or Moneygram to New York or Canada.
Like the lottery scam, the money order will initially clear, but turn up counterfeit a few days later. The victim will be liable for the value of the check. The money sent via Western Union or Moneygram cannot be recovered and the victim will be held responsible for thousands.
If you receive any unsolicited mail that contains a check or a money order, do not cash it. Instead, report the incident to your local law enforcement.
Back to School Parties
 As the summer winds to an end, area teenagers will no doubt make the most of the remainder of their vacation. Kern County parents need to be careful when hosting these parties, that they don't get caught up in the festivities and provide alcohol to minors. The parents or adults (also known as "social hosts") present at these parties face potential civil and criminal liabilities if they are caught distributing alcohol to minors.
Kern County recently enacted a provision known as the "Cool Parents Ordinance." In a nutshell, the ordinance holds the parent(s) or person(s) responsible for the property subject to civil penalties if there is a party on the premises where underage drinking occurs. In the event minors are in charge of the party, they will also be held criminally liable. Civil penalties can include $1,000 in fines and 40 hours community service. Criminal penalties against the adults held responsible can include up to $1,000 in fines and up to 1 year in jail for a misdemeanor. Of course, none of this includes the additional ramifications that can occur in the event of personal injuries resulting from an accident caused by the underage minor(s). The detailed penalties are outlined below:
Kern County Municipal Code 9.34.40 Civil Host Liability
Penalties for violation
- It is a civil violation of this chapter, and a public nuisance constituting an immediate threat to public health and safety warranting summary abatement, for any responsible person to conduct or allow a loud or unruly gathering at a residence or other private property at which service to, or consumption of, alcohol or alcoholic beverages by underage persons occurs. Such a violation subjects any and all responsible persons to a civil money penalty of one thousand dollars ($1,000).
- Violations of this section shall be noticed by citation, issued by the sheriff, to any and all responsible persons identified by the sheriff within thirty (30) days of the loud or unruly gathering at a residence or other private property at which service to, or consumption of, alcohol or alcoholic beverages by underage persons occurs. The citation shall also give notice of the right to request an administrative hearing to challenge the validity of the citation, and the time for requesting that hearing.
- In the event that a loud or unruly gathering at a residence or other private property at which service to, or consumption of, alcohol or alcoholic beverages by underage persons occurs is hosted by a juvenile, then the parents or guardians of that juvenile will be jointly and severally liable for any penalties incurred pursuant to this chapter.
- In the event that an underage person is found to be a responsible person as defined by this chapter, the underage person may elect to serve forty (40) hours in a community service program, as approved by the sheriff or probation officer as appropriate and pay any required program fees as an alternative to paying the civil money penalty of one thousand dollars ($1,000).
- The parents or guardians of a juvenile found to have hosted a loud or unruly gathering may also elect to have that juvenile serve 40 hours in community service and pay the program fees as an alternative penalty to paying the civil money penalty of one thousand dollars ($1,000).
- The community service program shall retain the discretion to admit, or deny admission to, the program as the standards and program policies applicable to that program allow. Failure to gain admission to a community service program, and failure to complete the program after admission, shall restore the original civil money penalty of one thousand dollars ($1,000) immediately and without further right to appeal.
- Failure by either an underage person or a juvenile host to complete the alternative penalty within one calendar year of the issuance of the citation shall result in the penalty being converted to a civil money penalty of one thousand dollars ($1,000). No reduction in the penalty is authorized for completion of less than forty (40) hours of community service. (Ord. G-7408 § 2 (part), 2006)
To read the Kern County Municipal code for Social Host Violation in its entirety:
http://municipalcodes.lexisnexis.com/
California Criminal Law does not directly address Social Host Liability; however a parent who allows an underage child to consume alcohol on the premises may face misdemeanor charges if certain conditions are met:
California Business and Professions Code 25658.2
- A parent or legal guardian who knowingly permits his or her child, or a person in the company of the child, or both, who are under the age of 18 years, to consume an alcoholic beverage or use a controlled substance at the home of the parent or legal guardian is guilty of misdemeanor if all of the following occur:
- As the result of the consumption of an alcoholic beverage or
use of a controlled substance at the home of the parent or legal
guardian, the child or other underage person has a blood-alcohol
concentration of 0.05 percent or greater, as measured by a chemical test, or is under the influence of a controlled substance.
- The parent knowingly permits that child or other underage
person, after leaving the parent's or legal guardian's home, to drive
a vehicle.
- That child or underage person is found to have caused a
traffic collision while driving the vehicle.
- A person who violates subdivision (a) shall be punished by
imprisonment in a county jail for a term not to exceed one year, by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both imprisonment and fine.
In the event you find yourself hosting the last of the summer blowouts, don't let underage drinking spoil the fun
You can visit Chain-Younger Websites for additional information regarding:
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