Want to throw a keg party?
The following is a testimonial from nine fourth year students who answered yes to this question and now sincerely regret their decision. They were not only misinformed about the potential consequences of this choice but were also very naive about the lifetime implications that could arise from hosting such an event.
On September 30th, 2006 we held a Homecoming keg party. We thought all had gone well. The party was broken up relatively early by the London Police and no fines or charges were laid against us. We thought we had gotten away with it -everything had gone according to plan and no consequences were foreseen.
A few weeks later we were informed that the university had learned about the event and that they were not happy. We were told that we were all being charged with violating the student code of conduct. In throwing the party we believed that our actions, which occurred off-campus, had no connection to the school. However, we were wrong: offcampus actions are included under the student code. By exposing students who attend the institutionto harm we were violatingthe studentcode of conduct.Wewere in deep trouble. We were then faced with the possibility of suspension or expulsion, a punishment that would also be attached to our transcripts. As a group of guys who aspire to be doctors, teachers, engineers, police offices, fire fighters, and business professionals, having this record would hinder our future career opportunities.
In retrospect, we hosted this event without considering the consequences of our actions. Not only were there consequences from the university, but legal ones as well. If someone from our party had driven home drunk and had gotten in an accident, all of us would have been held liable and likely faced with criminal charges as a result. There is a common belief that because individuals decide to drink as a personal choice, those who provide alcohol are not liable. This is not the case; those who provide alcohol are exposing individuals to harm and thus are legally responsible for their actions.
The purpose of this testimonial is to share our experience and stress the little-known consequences of throwing keg parties. It may seem like a cool thing to do, and an easy way to make some money, but please consider and fully understand the implications of doing so: expulsion, not being able to complete a degree, and possibly criminal charges. We spent our entire year on probation from the university and in the end we were assessed a $1000 fine. Trust us, you do not want to risk what we have: as fourth year university students, the threat of not graduating was not worth it in the end.
Sincerely,
Nine Western Students
As probably everyone is aware, it is illegal to sell alcohol in your home. What most people may not know, is that it is also illegal to disguise the cost as another cost such as a coat check, buy a cup and get drinks free, pay a charge to hear a DJ and drink free, buy a balloon and drink free. All of these options are illegal if any of the charge pays for the cost of the alcohol.
Why does this matter?
The Police have charged a number of people over the years and the consequences of what might appear to be a simple fun event, can turn ugly very quickly.
Be aware that:
The Police can and have charged every occupant of a house hosting a kegger...this could even mean YOU if you are out of town when your roommates host the event.
The charges that the Police can lay include:
The Police will generally also confiscate any alcohol or proceeds from the event.
Further to this issue...and probably more serious for the student...involves the liability of hosting an event. Even if you are not charging for alcohol, or if a person brings their own, if somebody consumes alcohol on the premise and then is injured or in an accident, EVERY OCCUPANT is liable for the incident. This would also mean that any guarantor (if there is one) such as a parent, is also liable for any incident after a person leaves.
The reason for this information is not to suggest that you never have a social gathering, but to ensure you are aware of potential problems.
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