Legal Question in Criminal Law in Texas

Re: House Party Liability

You are right to be concerned, and right to realize that this is a difficult issue to enforce. You have a legal responsibility to ensure that underage people, unaccompanied by their parents, are not drinking. My guess is that a sign is not enough to escape that responsiblity.

Alcoholic Beverage Code Says:

� 106.06. PURCHASE OF ALCOHOL FOR A MINOR; FURNISHING ALCOHOL TO A MINOR.

Text of subsec. (a) as amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 437, � 4

(a) Except as provided in Subsection (b) of this section, a person commits an offense if he purchases an alcoholic beverage for or gives or makes available an alcoholic beverage to a minor with criminal negligence.

Text of subsec. (a) as amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 934, � 79

(a) Except as provided in Subsection (b) of this section, a person commits an offense if he purchases an alcoholic beverage for or gives or with criminal negligence makes available an alcoholic beverage to a minor.

(b) A person may purchase an alcoholic beverage for or give an alcoholic beverage to a minor if he is the minor's adult parent, guardian, or spouse, or an adult in whose custody the minor has been committed by a court, and he is visibly present when the minor possesses or consumes the alcoholic beverage.

(c) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.

Penal Code Says:

(d) A person acts with criminal negligence, or is criminally negligent, with respect to circumstances surrounding his conduct or the result of his conduct when he ought to be aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the circumstances exist or the result will occur. The risk must be of such a nature and degree that the failure to perceive it constitutes a gross deviation from the standard of care that an ordinary person would exercise under all the circumstances as viewed from the actor's standpoint.