Facebook Unruly Party Organizers to Face Jail Time
While adults who had been working 8 hours a day during weekdays started snoozing off to their most anticipated long sleep during Friday nights, 100 drunk and overly hyper teenagers party aggressively in the Kawungan neighborhood. The party was announced through Facebook and there were 500 people who confirmed attending the said party.
In an interview with Fraser Coast Chronicle, resident Keri Mclnerney described the party that transpired, "There were literally teens shoulder to shoulder, there were hundreds of them. They were fighting, breaking bottles, urinating in our yards, ripping pout trees and drinking. Most of the kids were 14, 15, 16 years of age. They fought and abused the police; nothing seemed deter to deter them. It's time the council and State Government did something... the child and parents need to be held accountable for these parties."
Ms Mclnerney said that such parties had been happening in the neighborhood for a couple of times and the police need to do something.
In an immediate answer to this, Queensland Police Service proposed law that will punish those party organizers if their parties became destructive to the neighborhodd.
Police Minister Jack Dempsey told Sunshine Coast Daily, "Increasingly, with the advent of social media, police are being called to parties where gatecrachers, violence or the sheer number of people have contributed to an event becoming out of hand. I have had enough, police have had enough and the community has had enough of alcohol and drug-fuelled violence stemming from suburban parties and we want to put legislation in place to protect communities. This government is going to hit the party hosts in the hip pocket or put them behind bars to give them a little time to think about their actions."
According to the Queensland police's proposed law:
- A person who organises a party that becomes an out-of-contrl event faces a maximum penalty of 12 months imprisonment or 100 penalty units ($12,100).
- If a minor is found guilty of organizing an out-of-control party and cannot pay the costs of the police response, the court will be able to call on a parent to show cause why they should not be made to pay if the court considers that the parent may have contributed to the offence by not adequately supervising minor.
- If a parent permits a child to organize an event, or permits the event occur, and the event becomes out-of-control they face 12 months imprisonment or 110 penalty units (12,00)
- Gate crushers causing a party to become out-of-control face a maximum penalty of 12 months imprisonment or 110 penalty units ($12,100)
- Disobeying a direction relating to an out-of-control event attracts a maximum penalty of 12 months imprisonment or 110 penalty units ($12,100)
- Disobeying a direction relating to an out-of-control event with aggression and violence attracts a maximum penalty of three years imprisonment or 165 penalty units ($18,150)
- Per hour cost recovery charged to party organizer(s) for police required to disperse out-of-control events.
However, Australian Council for Civil Liberties president Terry O' Gorman said the proposals are excessive.
In an interview with ABC news, he said that, "Yes there is a problem with out-of-control parties but to try to deal with it by huge fines and threat of jail terms for a party is really taking the criminal law too far. If we are to implement the Western Australian Laws, which is the Newman Government proposal, some of more extreme aspects of that law have really got to be watered down and really should not be imported to Queensland law."
"Particularly making parents both criminally and financially responsible for parties which get out of control."
The proposed laws were set for review by State cabinet until September 2013.