Having Fun
As a young adult, you will have many new opportunities for fun and games. Keep in mind, however, that there are legal limits. For example, if your parties "disturb the peace," a police officer may be knocking on your door. If you disrupt a professional sporting event by throwing something onto the field, you could face a fine. And if you are subjected to dangerous rituals during your initiation into a college fraternity, someone could wind up in jail.
When would a party be disruptive enough to illegally disturb the peace?
Police officers could break up your party - and, depending on the circumstances, make arrests - if the festivities include:
- Fighting
- Loud Music
- Rowdiness
- Loud, unreasonable noise
What can I do if strangers "crash" my party?
You can ask police to kick them out. Crashing a party is trespassing and is illegal.
I'm worried about what might happen during my college fraternity initiation. Are there limits to what they can do?
Yes. It is against the law for any organization or pre-initiation into a student organization to involve hazing. Haze is ay method of initiation or pre-initiation into a student organization which causes (or is likely to cause) physical danger or harm, or personal degradation or disgrace resulting in physical or mental harm to any student or other person attending any educational institution in California. If you participate in hazing, you could be fined up to $5,000 and/or be sent to jail. YOu could also be liable for civil damages.
What could happen if I;m arrested for spray-painting graffiti?
Expressing yourself with spray paint on someone else's property could land you in jail, or even prison, and could cost you as much as $50,000 in fines, depending on the extent of damage. You also could be required to pay for repairing the damaged property and be forced to work on a work crew to remove graffiti in your area.
Do I need a special license to operate a motorboat?
No. But take the time to learn the speed limits and right-of-way rules. And if you plan to tow a water-skier, know where and how to do it. As the boat operator, you could be help responsible for any accidents.
And while alcohol may be present on a boat, it is illegal for the driver to be under the influence. If a drunken boat operator is at the helm when a fatal accident occurs, he or she could be charged with gross vehicular manslaughter.
If you are under 21, it is illegal to operate any recreational vessel or even water ski with a 0.01 percent or more blood-alcohol concentration.