Legal Question in Criminal Law in Ohio

Need help fast. My son and his friend were at a party at a house where 27 kids have been charged with under age drinking and marijuana. The police said they are handling this with "internal" methods and that they were not going through Juvenile Court. The problem I have is that as soon as my son got there he called me to tell what was going on at the party and that his ride was coming back in ten minutes to take him home. The cops didn't care when I told them that nor do they care now that my son was only there for 15 mins total time before the police arrived and no they did not see him with any alcohol or marijuana but because he was there all 27 kids got charged.

Also the cops gave the High School the list of names of the kids who were there and charged the school has told the students they are suspended from playing sports for 6 months and that my son could not play on the basketball team next year. How are they allowed to do this when it had nothing to do with school. What options do we have?


Asked on 4/01/10, 12:51 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Richard Cline Office of the Ohio Public Defender

This sounds like a situation where you need to hire an attorney to review the facts and then advise you and your son on how to proceed. There are several issues here.

(1) The police deciding to handle this with "internal methods" instead of court. Normally this is favorable to the accused, but may not be favorable in your son's case. An attorney who is fully informed of the facts could make recommendations on that issue.

(2) The police notifying the school. Juvenile case records are typically confidential, so there may be an issue here.

(3) The school taking administrative action. There may be an administrative process to allow your son to challenge this administrative action, but you would have to research it through the school system or the Board of Education.

(4) The "one size fits all" approach. This is very troubling. We try to preach individual accountability to our children, but this is teaching them that everyone is treated the same, regardless of their culpability.

Because there are so many complex issues at play here, I would recommend you hire an attorney in your area to help you address them.

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Answered on 4/06/10, 1:06 pm


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