All the talk about drinking laws made me think of a "loophole"
that was used at Vanderbilt from the mid 70's until about 1990.
TN state law states it is OK for an 18-20 y.o. to drink IF:
- the alcohol was provided by the parent
- the parent supervises the drinking
- the drinking was done at home or on private property
Ever heard of "In Loco Parentis"?? LATIN means "local parents",
legal description of the relationship between a college and
its students. Basically means that while a kid is in college and
on campus, the college admin can legally act as the student's
PARENT. I think this was originally intended to allow school
officials to check students into a hospital, make campus rules
that aren't state law, etc.
Well, when the new 21 drinking age went into effect, Vandy's
admin found a new application for "In Loco Parentis"!
Since Vandy admin acts as a student's parent, and since Vandy's
campus is private property (a private, not state-run school),
it is therefore legal for 18-20 y.o. Vandy students to drink
as long as:
- it is provided by the admin (their local parent).
- it is supervised by the admin (their local parent).
- it is at home or on private propterty (campus is local home
and is private propterty).
So from the mid-70's until about 1990, every year for
Spring Fling, Vandy admin bought truck loads of beer,
parked them on library lawn, and opened the doors....
any student 18 and older could have all they wanted.
It was a party, to say the least!
"The Law" agreed with Vandy's interpretation and let it
go on for years. Until the Red Hot Chili Pepper's concert....
bunch of 18-21 yo college students...outside at a
Pepper's concert...drunk as can be...one of the band
members urinates on the crowd...massive fight breaks out....
state troopers called in to break it up.....state govt decides
to change its interpretation of law and In Loco Parentis....
no more free/legal beer at Spring Fling for 18-20 yo's.
Just goes to show, only takes one idiot to mess up a
"good thing" for everybody....even if he is a Chili Pepper
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