A local doctor will not face charges in connection with a mid-April underage drinking party at his residence, as authorities confirmed he had instructed the minors not to bring alcohol.
Buchanan County Prosecuting Attorney Dwight Scroggins said Wednesday he decided to not file any charges against Dr. William G. Humphreys, 51, for the incident that occurred the evening of April 12.
Mr. Scroggins received a police report alleging that Dr. Humphreys, an orthopedist, had allowed minors to possess or consume alcohol at his home. Police determined that several minors were consuming alcohol as they came out of the residence. Mr. Humphreys was arrested at the home on the misdemeanor offense and taken to the Buchanan County Law Enforcement Center, where he later posted a $1,000 bond and was released.
“Subsequent interviews with minors holding the party at the residence confirmed Mr. Humphreys’ account that he had specifically instructed the minors to have no alcohol,” Mr. Scroggins said. “There was no alcohol found in the home and no indication Mr. Humphreys was aware anyone else had brought alcohol to the residence. There was no allegation that Mr. Humphreys had provided alcohol to the minors.”
Police cited six underage drinkers and one juvenile for possession of alcohol at the party.
Last year, the St. Joseph City Council approved a “social hosting” ordinance that prohibits adults from supplying alcohol to a person younger than 21 or allowing them to stay in their home or on their property while consuming or possessing alcohol. The local law mirrors a state statute and carries a maximum six-month jail sentence and/or a $1,000 fine.
“These are cases which we view to be very serious in nature and will continue to aggressively prosecute,” Mr. Scroggins said. “There does, however, have to be some indication adults at the residence are aware of the presence of alcohol or have provided the alcohol for there to be a violation.”
Ray Scherer can be reached at
rscherer@npgco.com.
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Must be nice to have friends in high places.
Posted by missouri_mule on May 15, 2008 at 8:17 a.m. (Suggest removal)It is his house and he should be aware of what is going on in his house with his kids.
What a joke.
SWEET
Posted by mcresej on May 15, 2008 at 8:33 a.m. (Suggest removal)lionsroar, it is very easy to conceal and consume alcohol without the knowledge of a parent unless that parent is attached to the hip of the kid............then that would bring about an entirely different criminal charge.:)
Posted by sunny13 on May 15, 2008 at 8:38 a.m. (Suggest removal)Mcresej: RESPONSIBLE parents would know what is happening in their home. The article reads that "several minors were consuming alcohol as they came out of the residence". One might concede that it would be easy for a single individual to conceal a beverage from an adult, but several? Unlikely. I assume that Dr. Humphreys was giving his child and his/her some freedom (without hovering), and was trusting them to be responsible in the home. I'm certain that the privilege of trust has been revoked since the events of evening.
Posted by 4wildones on May 15, 2008 at 9:29 a.m. (Suggest removal)They just opened up this whole thing to any parent who wants to claim, "I said no alcohol, I didn't know they were drinking". What a joke they have just made of the system. I knew something like this would happen. There was no way he was going to be charged with anything. It was in his home for pete's sake. I would not be too sure about the privilege of trust being lost as sunny13 said. More than likely it has been chalked up to kids will be kids. That is why the kid thought he could get away with it in the first place.
Posted by biggieroth on May 15, 2008 at 9:29 a.m. (Suggest removal)lionsroar...Did you even ready the article above? After the investigation was complete there was no compelling evidence to charge him.
The legal system was running like it supposed to.
Posted by dpr95 on May 15, 2008 at 9:53 a.m. (Suggest removal)If you really believe that he is innocent and the teenagers told the truth during their interviews with Mr. Scroggins, then I have some desert land down by the riverfront that I would like to sell to you.
Posted by biggieroth on May 15, 2008 at 10:50 a.m. (Suggest removal)dpr95...I see your point, but it doesn't really matter. With the evidence they had, there is no way they could charge him.
Posted by Anoneemus on May 15, 2008 at 11:25 a.m. (Suggest removal)Well said biggieroth. Like it or not we do have a legal system that includes the presumption of innocence. It would appear as though the doctor has been tried and convicted in the court of public opinion, so it's done. If you think he's guilty, don't be his patient.
Posted by heritage on May 15, 2008 at 12:41 p.m. (Suggest removal)i thought it was a stupid law from the outset. more nanny state, bah!
Posted by biggieroth on May 15, 2008 at 12:56 p.m. (Suggest removal)The same people that complain and say "he just got off because he is who he is" are the same people that would have said "why is the prosecutor wasting time on cases like this when there should be more attention paid to more serious crimes" when the case went to court and then would have been thrown out for a lack of evidence.
Posted by JoeWag on May 15, 2008 at 3:44 p.m. (Suggest removal)Two great blog post about Dr House Party on Wag the Joe dot com check them out.
Posted by heritage on May 15, 2008 at 6:20 p.m. (Suggest removal)the wag the joe site is great..... thanks for the heads up. now i can stop reading the paper's "its your call" section for my morning humor!!!!!
Posted by StJoeMoe on May 15, 2008 at 9:44 p.m. (Suggest removal)"wagthejoe" locked my computer, not sure it is a site worth frequenting much.....
Whatever happened to the old www.stjoeugly.com - now that site was a riot!
Anyway, I'll probably drop back into that wagthejoe site again anyway.
That and that little paper, "the regular joe", are both a little fresh air - much needed thanks to Triumph and that stinky smelly Lifeline alcohol plant......
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