San Rafael woman arrested for allegedly holding drunken teenage party

Jessica Bernstein-Wax
Marin Independent Journal
Posted: 03/28/2011 05:02:21 PM PDT

A San Rafael mother was in custody Monday after authorities arrested her for allegedly hosting a drunken party attended by teenagers.

A taxi driver called the Marin County Sheriff's Office about 10:15 p.m. Friday and reported that parked cars were blocking the 200 block of Margarita Drive in unincorporated San Rafael, Lt. Barry Heying said.

Deputies discovered a raucous party with about 60 teenage guests, he said.

"The home was trashed with overturned tables and garbage on the floor," Heying said. A 14-year-old girl was so intoxicated that she required medical treatment, he said.

It took six deputies and five firefighters to break up the party and provide medical evaluations.

Deputies found Carolyn Hedrich, 57, the homeowner and mother of the 15-year-old boy who was hosting the gathering, inside the house and under the influence of drugs and possibly alcohol, Heying said. Hedrich was arrested on suspicion of child endangerment, being under the influence of a controlled substance and violation of probation.

The sheriff's office also served Hedrich with a civil summons for allegedly violating Marin County's "social host" ordinance. She remained in custody Monday in lieu of $55,000 bail.

Approved in late 2006, the social host law imposes stiff fines on adult hosts of teenage drinking parties. It was approved by the county after two Novato teenagers died in an alcohol-fueled car crash a year earlier. Municipalities around Marin have since followed suit by passing similar laws.

About 30 people have been subject to $750 fines or community service so far under the county's ordinance, with the vast majority of those cases taking place in 2007, 2008 and 2009, said Jack Govi, assistant county counsel.

There were only about three cases in 2010, he said.

"Wishful thinking would have it that maybe word was getting out and people were getting more educated, but I have to temper that by also saying that teenagers in the community tell me there are just as many parties as there used to be," Govi said. The reduction in 2010 may have been partly due to highly publicized teenage drunken driving accidents, he noted.