Clubs, Borough agree on new wristband policy

After brokering a deal with the Princeton Borough Police, Cap and Gown, Colonial and Quadrangle eating clubs will enact stricter policies to curb underage drinking — including a new wristband policy.

The arrangement comes after a string of arrests by Borough Police of a number of club officers. Only those three clubs have been charged with abetting underage drinking.

The agreement, explained Colonial attorney Kim Otis, requires the clubs to hand out wristbands to students over 21 after their I.D. is checked at the front entrance. Only students with wristbands will be served alcohol.

The police will be allowed to go to the doors of the clubs to ensure the wristband policy is in effect, Otis said.

The police can also go undercover as they did last fall to ensure the clubs are abiding by the rules.

Though the wristband policy may seem new to students, the clubs should have been doing it for years, Borough officials have said.

Pending charges against eating club officers and bartenders will be put on hold until the end of the school year if the clubs adhere to the new guidelines, Otis said.

A clean record by the clubs could open the possibility of the charges being dropped.

The court date is scheduled for the end of May.

This deal reflects the Borough Police's interest in seeing the clubs take an active role in curtailing underage drinking, Otis said.

"What they are looking for is an actual effort instead of a cover up," he said.

If another underage drinking incident occurs, however, it would not necessarily mean a breach of agreement. "It depends on the facts," Otis said.

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"If an underage person was funneled alcohol by a student [not a club officer or bartender], the officers may not be held liable," Otis said.

However, Otis said, if alcohol became accessible to anyone at any time, there would be a problem.

Though the new measures may curb underage drinking inside the clubs, there are concerns among students that the policy will push students to drink in less safe environments.

"Students who want to drink will find a way, and that may mean looking for other alternatives," Rick Raymond '06 said.

"These places may not only be less safe than the eating clubs but could also lead to drunk driving," he added.

Unlike dorm rooms, the clubs have safety measures in place to make sure people are safe when they drink, Otis said. Stricter regulations, he said, will not stop drinking but instead push it to other venues where there is no one to supervise.

"Even if the clubs stop serving alcohol completely, that may only encourage more incidents on campus, in dorm rooms," Otis said.

Despite the student arrests, the ongoing debate and the possible implications for the campus, the University has decided to remain silent on the matter.

"The eating clubs are independent from the University," communications director Lauren Robinson-Brown '85 said. "The University does not plan on releasing a general statement."

But the University's position may change as the situation develops, she said.