Maryland Underage drinking laws are some of the most rigid in the country. Maryland is one of the 7 states who opted to completely prohibit consumption of alcohol by minors, with no exceptions. Maryland’s stern laws on underage drinking might be responsible for making the incidence of Maryland underage drinking one of the lowest in the country of about 27.7% in 2004.[1]
Just like every other state in the U.S., Maryland is battling underage drinking problems. In the Maryland Adolescent Survey in 2004, some 40,200 12th graders report that they have consumed alcohol at least once and 44.1 % of them have done so in the previous month.[2] In fact, only last month, three minors got arrested for underage drinking. This was after a house in Bel Air was raided for hosting a drinking party.[3]
Over the years, Maryland has created policies that attempt to control the occurrence of underage drinking. One such example is the Zero Tolerance Law. It is a Maryland underage drinking law that states that any minor caught with a Breath Alcohol Content of more than .02 will be penalized.[4]
What is most impressing is the Maryland Ignition Interlock System Program. Penalties for teen drunk drivers are more severe than adult drunk drivers. When a driver under 21 years of age is convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol, he or she may be required to install a gadget on the vehicle that the driver must blow into to check for breath alcohol content. If the reading is above the Breath Alcohol Content Limit, the ignition will NOT start. These gadgets are definitely cool. Then again, they are not cheap and they are added to Maryland’s quite hefty charges.[5] The grave penalties imposed in Maryland are certainly making minors more cautious of drinking and driving.
The residents and state officials of Maryland are actively responding to the social issue. The state apparently spends a lot of its yearly budget on preventing underage drinking. According to a survey in 2007, Maryland ranks 16thhighest among the 50 states for the cost per youth of underage drinking. [6] For its residents, Maryland underage drinking is definitely serious business.
[1] http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k6/stateUnderageDrinking/underageDrinking.htm
[2] http://www.alcohol.umd.edu/summit08/Underage_Drinking_1030_UM_CESAR_1.pdf
[3] http://belair.patch.com/articles/3-men-cited-in-laughing-duck-underage-drinking-bust
[4] http://www.nhtsa.gov/people/outreach/safesobr/13qp/facts/factzero.html
[5] http://knowledgebase.findlaw.com/kb/2009/Apr/1195042_2.html
[6] http://www.udetc.org/factsheets/Maryland.pdf