Party Host Mom Set for Va. Jail Term

From the AP via the Huffington Post courtesy of AlterNet:

Ryan Kenty, 20, and his brother Brandon, still a sophomore in high school, plan to drive their mother to jail Monday morning before heading back to her rented apartment to move the rest of her belongings into storage.

Their mom, Elisa Kelly, and her ex-husband, George Robinson, are paying the price for hosting Ryan's 16th birthday party -- more than two years in jail each. Ryan had asked his mother to buy his friends some beer and wine, as long as they all spent the night.

"No one left the party," said Kelly, 42, who collected car keys that night almost five years ago to prevent anyone from leaving. "No one was hurt. No one drove anywhere. I really don't think I deserve to go to jail for this long."

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I'll second that last thought. I mean, okay, she broke the law, but did so in a responsible way that recognized the realities of underage drinking. That is, lots of teens drink and everybody knows it: teen drinking is waaay more safe when supervised by adults than when not. Maybe a fine would be appropriate. I don't know. But two fucking years in jail?!? That's nuts. Plain nuts. Really, the law ought to change to reflect the reality. Fuck, man, I lost one of my high school students to a drunk driving accident back when I was teaching. If he'd been drinking at this party instead of on his own, he'd have never been allowed behind the wheel of his car. He'd be alive today.

This is so fucked up. In many ways, this woman was doing the right thing.

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