Article: As graduation parties near, adults' role as hosts questioned Bill would penalize those who are present when teens drink

Graduation images already are crystallizing for the Class of '99: white tents and barbecues, dancing and parties, kisses and hugs for friends for a lifetime.

That's the ideal. The ugly flip side is a weekend of excess, and a wink from adults who consider binge drinking a time-hallowed part of the graduation ritual.

Nearly three years have passed since 19-year-old Gregory Smith of Marshfield died in a drunken car crash after a high school graduation party. But the adults who host such bashes continue to do so with little fear of liability. That's because Massachusetts still does not have tough penalties for adults who let minors help themselves to alcohol on their property. Under the law, ...

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