DA Leone Urges Reading Students to Be Safe, Make Good Decisions During Prom and Graduation Season

The following was submitted by the Middlesex District Attorney's office:

Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone urged nearly 300 12^th grade students at Reading High School Monday to make good and healthy decisions about teenage alcohol and drug use, and impaired driving, especially during the prom and graduation season when the incidents of car crashes are typically highest.

Each year, as prom and graduation season begins, DA Leone addresses students in high schools throughout Middlesex County about making healthy choices and avoiding the dangers of impaired driving or getting into a car with an impaired operator. Stating that statistics show that car crashes are the leading cause of death for young adults between the ages of 15-20, DA Leone stressed the fact that these statistics dramatically increase in impaired driving related traffic fatalities during prom and graduation season. 

“Every spring, high school seniors are approaching the end of their high school experience and are on the verge of embarking on a new journey in their lives, which should make for a time of celebration for them and their families.  Sadly, as District Attorney, I far too often see the tragic results of young people making bad decisions to drive impaired or to get in a car with an impaired driver,” District Attorney Leone said. “Statistics show that car crashes, usually due to impairment or distraction, are the number one cause of death for youth aged 15-20, with a significant rise during prom and graduation seasons.  Each year, I make it a priority to discuss these dangers with high school students, and urge young people and those who care for them to pay particular attention to choices that impact themselves and others at this time.” 

According to the 2009 Massachusetts Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 27 percent of Massachusetts youth surveyed reported riding with a driver who had been drinking and 9 percent reported that they themselves had driven after they had been drinking. With 64 percent of high school students 12^th graders surveyed nationally stating that they have tried alcohol, according to a 2011 survey put out by the National Institutes of Drug Abuse, District Attorney Leone is actively engaging students, parents, and caretakers to avoid teenage drinking and driving. 

For the fifth consecutive year, DA Leone, in collaboration with the Middlesex County School Superintendents, has sent out letters with advice intended to help parents and caretakers protect their children from the dangers of drinking and driving during this year's prom and graduation season. The joint letter, which is distributed to parents and caretakers of 12th graders in Middlesex County, offers parents a number of proactive steps that they can take to help prevent their children and others from getting behind the wheel while impaired and from getting in a car with an impaired driver. D.A. Leone offers these alternatives to parents and teens during this prom season:

• Offer your teens transportation alternatives. Offer to provide your teen rides or to have a sibling or family friend provide rides on prom night. If your teen does not want you to pick them up, oftentimes suggesting a sibling or family friend is a great compromise.

• If you are able to, hire or share professional transportation for your teen’s prom night. Make sure you have a discussion with the driver prior to prom night about your expectations that the ride be alcohol-free. Sometimes these drivers will agree to purchase or furnish alcohol for their minor passengers; it is important to ensure that this will not happen by talking directly with the driver.

• Provide your teen with the phone number of a reputable local taxi company and make plans to pay for your teen’s taxi fare for the night.  Remember, this is a small cost to keep your child safe. 

• Give your teen a cell phone or other mobile device to communicate with you directly throughout the night. Make sure your own cell phone or mobile device is with you during the evening to facilitate texts or quick calls to check in.

In the letter, D.A. Leone and the superintendents also remind parents that they can be held liable if they choose to host a party for teens where alcohol is served and then have one of their guests harm themselves or others by the negligent operation of a motor vehicle due to alcohol consumption.