A class-action suit, and the birth of a new law

New state alcohol legislation has sparked controversy among residents of New Jersey towns who fear it could infringe on individuals' right to privacy.

But this method of preventing underage drinking — giving police powers to cite underage drinkers on private property — is not new to the state.

Avalon, N.J., adopted a similar ordinance more than 20 years ago to combat underage drinking at rented homes during the summer, when the town's population swells from 2,000 to 30,000.

State officials in Atlantic County began pushing for the new state law last year when Avalon was forced to repeal its ordinance — which made underage drinking a punishable offense even on private property — under the settlement terms of a federal class-action lawsuit.

Under the original Avalon ordinance, violators faced fines of $125 for the first offense and mandatory community service, according to Avalon police Chief Steve Sykes.

But in 1996, Avalon police stepped up their enforcement of the ordinance to combat the drinking, which they believed was rising to alarming levels. During the following three years, nearly 3,000 people under 21 were cited for drinking, Sykes said.

Avalon police began using a converted school bus — dubbed the "Magic Bus" by teenagers for its unexpected arrival at parties — to round up underage drinkers and transport them to the station. And on July 4 weekend in 1997, more than 500 people received citations.

"We felt we were doing the right thing and not violating anything in the Constitution," Sykes said. "Imagine all the lives we probably saved."

The massive crackdown sparked a 1998 class-action lawsuit filed by plaintiffs Amanda Hall and Jaime Hensinger, and brought up in United States District Court in Camden by Wildwood attorney Frank Corrado.

Corrado said the lawsuit accused Avalon of extending a state statute and enforcing a law without respect to probable cause guidelines police are required to follow.

"They took a state statute, which criminalized underage drinking in a public place, and violated the statute by applying it to a private place," he said. "They were essentially going into a house and arresting everyone under the age of 21 for being in the same room with alcohol."

Corrado said he did not attempt to raise Fourth Amendment issues in the written complaint. "Because it was a class-action suit, we wanted to include conduct applicable to every incident," he said.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

The case was settled out of court in December 1999, according to Jay Sanchez, the clerk of United States District Court in Camden.

The terms of the settlement were a major victory for the 1,700 people — including vacationers from New York and Pennsylvania — who were named in the lawsuit as being fined during the preceding three years.

According to Corrado, Avalon paid $1.5 million to the people who were cited to refund the fines and compensate damages of up to $500 per person. In addition, Avalon expunged their arrest records from the books and agreed to repeal the ordinance.

"I was outraged that they were having to put up with thousands of drunken adolescents each year," said A. Michael Barker, the attorney who represented Avalon in the suit.

But now, with the recently passed state law in place, Avalon has enacted a new underage drinking ordinance — a move Princeton Borough and other New Jersey towns are considering.

Though Borough Mayor Marvin Reed said he did not believe such ordinances violated the Fourth Amendment, he said he was not sure if an ordinance was appropriate for the Borough.

"It's a hard thing for any municipality," he said. "You don't cross the threshold unless you have strong reasons for doing so."

Before he agrees to support the possible ordinance, Reed said he wants assurances that police will enforce it uniformly throughout the Borough. He also said he wants to confirm that the Borough police department is large enough to enforce the ordinance in what he called an "evenhanded manner."

He added that to enforce a potential ordinance the police need to have a cooperative agreement with University Public Safety.

"Police are not about to take on the responsibility of the proctors for dealing with the alcohol problem on campus," Reed said. "I include the eating clubs in that."