Criminal Charges Halted in Underage Alcohol Cases

It will be another attempt to clarify a law that has prompted a potentially damaging lawsuit against the city and has generated acrimony between the courts and city officials.

The suit, initially filed in federal court and later re-filed in Superior Court, alleges that people arrested on underage possession charges in recent years were subjected to wrongful arrest. It seeks to have their records expunged and damages paid.

Carol Elder Bruce, the attorney who filed the suit, said police and prosecutors want to have the threat of jail and a criminal record at their disposal because they believe it serves as a deterrent -- whether it is legal or not.

"They are deliberately trying to teach these kids a lesson by treating them roughly, by intimidating them and mocking them and making them as uncomfortable as possible," said Bruce, a partner at Tighe Patton Armstrong Teasdale.

The suit, which is seeking class-action status, identified the plaintiffs only as John Doe to spare them further exposure, Bruce said.

"It was embarrassing," said an 18-year-old plaintiff who attends Georgetown University. He said he was arrested on 36th Street NW in front of dozens of schoolmates after a friend he was with was spotted carrying a couple of beers. "The next morning, everyone knew already. It was really embarrassing."

The experience left the 18-year-old disenchanted with the police, said the student, who like the other plaintiffs spoke only on the condition of anonymity. "After that, I really don't trust the Metropolitan Police so much," the student said.

Another plaintiff, a 19-year-old student at George Washington University, was arrested this year. He and a friend were leaving a Foggy Bottom grocery store carrying some beer when they were confronted by an undercover police officer who demanded to know how old they were, he said. Handcuffed to each other, they were taken away and charged with underage possession.

"It was a little surreal," the student said. "It was kind of like a dream, it happened so fast."

The charge was thrown out, but prosecutors have appealed the dismissal, so the student's fate with the law is in limbo.

Staff writers Jamie Stockwell and Del Quentin Wilber contributed to this report.