Buffalo Grove police target teen alcohol abuse at homecoming events

The high school football season brings memorable events for young people including homecoming games and related dances and parties. Unfortunately, with these events also come concerns about underage drinking.

The Buffalo Grove Police Department will be addressing these concerns in multiple ways:

Ÿ Liquor compliance checks will be conducted at retail liquor establishments in the village. The timing for these compliance checks is coordinated with the Lake County Underage Drinking Prevention Task Force and the homecoming events at Stevenson High School and Buffalo Grove High School.

Ÿ The police department will also have additional officers patrolling the village specifically targeting underage drinking parties on the nights of the homecoming dances, Sept. 24 and Oct. 15. The village expanded and strengthened its social host ordinance in 2009. This ordinance is designed to hold any adult, not just parents, accountable for events at which kids are drinking or using drugs.

The Buffalo Grove Police Department is a member of the Lake County Underage Drinking Prevention Task Force. The task force was formed to combine the efforts of the Lake County Chiefs of Police and the Lake County After School Coalition in the prevention of underage consumption of alcohol. This group is made up of a diverse group of citizens including community members, parents, law enforcement personnel and other professionals interested in preventing underage drinking.