Whether you’re a “cool” parent — and to be honest, “cool” parents are actually the worst — or just a kid looking to get a little buzz on, Ohio law stipulates four occasions under which folks not yet 21 can legally consume alcohol in the state.
1. On private, non alcohol-selling premises and with consent of parent or spouse- Throw ’em back in a private home, office, or on private property as long as a parent or of-age spouse is physically present to give consent. Hey ma, this graduation party is killer. What? You’ve had a bottle of chardonnay already? You will probably say yes to anything I ask.
2. On alcohol-selling premises with consent of parent or spouse – Drink up at a restaurant or bar, so long as mom or pop places the order, and gives permission. Pass the onion rings, and that Miller Lite draft.
3. For religious purposes – Sip on some wine or any other alcoholic elixir, as long as it’s part of a recognized religious service. Catholics had it right all along.
4 For medical purposes – Get a doc to write a script, and you’re in the clear. Glaucoma, sadly, probably isn’t a qualifying malady.
This article appears in Nov 19-25, 2014.
They are missing a point about #2. The restaurant can refuse to serve the underage person even if the parents consent. I worked for a major beer company.
So they go somewhere else. Point is, it’s still legal. Like carrying a gun. It’s legal to carry unless posted by the establishment.
I must be a real drunk. I always knew this. My doc was a drunk also.
It’s nice that the author is telling parents to break the law and violate the liquor license of the establishment. Really job piece of journalism you may want to read the actual law before spewing this garbage.
Quit being a buzzkill, square.
You cannot carry a firearm into an establishment that dispenses alcohol…whether ther have a sign posted or not. If they just sell, like a grocery store, then you can carry a firearm.
This is real cute, but Ohio is a dram shop state. This means that regardless of parental consent, the person serving alcohol is ultimately responsible for any actions of the person being served. So as a bartender in Ohio, I can serve someone one drink, and if that person has a BAC over the legal limit and is involved in an accident, I can be held fully responsible. The person who caused the accident can sue me for over-serving (since over-serving is illegal, as is serving an intoxicated person), as can anyone injured by the person who caused the accident. The establishment can lose their licensing as well.
The issue here is that for a minor, the legal BAC is .02 whereas the legal BAC for an adult is .08; that means little Jessie can have approximately 1 beer ever 2 hours so that she doesn’t blow over .02. Most service industry folk, along with most establishments, aren’t going to be held responsible for making sure that Jessie remains at or below .02 BAC, so they’ll refuse service.
CJ…Not true…That law is now changed. As long as you are not consuming you can carry in any bar or tavern not displaying a “no guns allowed” sign.
so basically you can taste it, but you shouldn’t be doing too much more than that and the law agrees
ok cleveland patrick ur wrong i don’t give a shit what major beer company u work for! as a bar manager of one of the biggest nightclubs in ohio ,while i don’t agree with it fact is as long as the parents r buying for their kids u have 2 serve them. if u take money from someone else then u r breaking the law! get it right next time b4 u run ur fu@#in mouth!
Actually Michael streich cleveland patrick is correct. As I’m a police officer I think I know the law. It is still ultimately up to the restaurant / store owner. If they refuse to serve them the customer also can not come back and sue.