The president of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity was arrested two Saturdays ago as part of a new Rensselaer county initiative to curb underage drinking in this area. PKA was holding a party that night, and police allegedly found underage students trying to walk home from the house who were under the influence. When they arrived at the house to investigate, they allegedly found another underage student with an open container. Under current laws, in these circumstances the primary resident of the house is liable.
“The Pikes themselves did the right things in terms of checking IDs and keeping the noise down,” said Dean of Students Mark Smith of the party. “But no matter what precautions are, if there’s only one person who thinks they can get away with something, you’ve got a problem.”
According to Patricia DeAngelis, District Attorney for Rensselaer County, the task force was organized to put an end to underage drinking to make both students and community members safer. “We’re very concerned about students drinking to the point where they’re in medical danger,” she said. “We know that underage drinking is prevalent on campuses, as well as high schools.”
DeAngelis said her office was also concerned about various problems that are associated with alcohol, such as date rape, vandalism, bar fights, and drunk driving. Two pedestrians were killed this summer by people who were allegedly drunk driving, adding emphasis to the initiative’s goal. DeAngelis said students can expect to see more random checkpoints both in the RPI area and in Troy as a whole.
Smith said that this is a reaction to growing concerns about the issue, and not the usual start-of-semester initiative. He said that the students that the police found leaving the PKA party were “in such a condition that they didn’t even know where they were.”
“The tolerance level of ‘college students will be college students’ will not be accepted at the extreme,” he said. “You can’t just shrug this off anymore. The potential for harm is too high.” He went on to say that while students may think that an arrest for either providing alcohol to a minor or for underage drinking may seem like a minor offense, it is not looked on well by future employers. “My opinion is that it’s not worth the risk,” Smith said.
Smith said he expected community police to be investigating more thoroughly now, and doing checks at “well-known establishments,” including local bars. He advised students to find their way home quickly and safely, but above all to be careful with parties. “If there’s a large congregation of people and open containers, it’s hard to hide,” he remarked.
DeAngelis’ office is coordinating a meeting at RPI tonight to discuss the new initiative. They will be cooperating with RPI Public Safety, the Dean of Students’ office, Troy Police, Student Senate, and Inter-Fraternity Council will be attending the meeting.
