“Right, wrong or indifferent, the legal drinking age in Wisconsin is 21,” Platteville Police Chief Doug McKinley said in his opening statements at the Underage Drinking Task Force Forum Monday night at the Pioneer Student Center.

McKinley was one member of an eight-person panel assembled to address student concerns about the Grant County Underage Drinking Task Force, commonly referred to as the “Party Patrol.” More than 100 students turned out to hear why the city and county have begun ramping up their efforts to address underage drinking around the UW-Platteville campus and throughout Grant County.

In attendance were: McKinley; Jeffery Kindrai, director of the Grant County health department; Tonya Wagner and Kathy Marty with the Safe Actions for Everyone Grant County Coalition; Rich Egley, dean of students; Mick Viney, assistant chancellor for student affairs; Sgt. Chad Breuer with the Grant County sheriff’s department and Lt. Jeff Hass with the Platteville Police Department.

Members of the panel said the task force was created due to necessity.

“The statistics we saw alarmed us,” Marty said.

Marty said Wisconsin has the highest adult drinking rate, the highest adult binge drinking rate, the second highest college binge drinking rate, the highest number of high school students who drink, the highest underage drinking rate, the most people admitting to drunk driving and the highest alcohol consumption rate among pregnant women.

Wagner cited a spring 2009 UW-P Counseling Services survey in which UW-P students relayed their alcohol consumption habits. According to the survey, 47 percent of UW-P students reported memory loss and 46 percent did something they later regretted while under the influence of alcohol. Forty-five percent of students got into a fight, 28 percent drove, 24 percent were injured, 8 percent experienced unwanted sexual contact and 54 percent admitted to drinking in excess.

These statistics drove SAFE Grant County to apply for a federal grant to the order of $50,000 per  year to curb underage drinking in the area. The grant funds educational and prevention activities along with creating the UDTF, which began operating last December and quickly helped bust several large-scale parties during the Spring semester, including a party in February where 52 people were cited.

The increase in party busts led to protests from students who felt the police had better things to do than target college parties. More than 200 students joined a group on Facebook to protest the UDTF.

“I feel that it is an easy way for the police to make a lot of money in one weekend,” sophomore criminal justice major, Trevor Kearney said shortly after the party patrol was formed.

“There is the misconception that we target parties simply because they are parties, but that is not the case,” Haas said. “We only make contact with these parties because of neighbor complaints of people urinating in public, damaging property, fighting or other behavior that draws attention. Once we are aware that underage drinking has occurred, we are duty bound to go further and make sure people get home safe and are not a risk on the road.”

“It’s not like the city or Grant County is lining it’s pockets from this,” McKinley said. “The vast majority of profits are going back into the community, into the Fresh Start Program.”

The Fresh Start Program allows first-time offenders to be exempt from paying the fine after an alcohol abuse course.