March 18-- In one week, parents Kristi Montgomery and Shane Emerson went from the elation of welcoming a new grandchild to their family to overnight hospital stays caring for their teen son who was injured in a serious car crash.
Their son Hunter Emerson was 15 years old in July when he was ejected from a sport utility vehicle driven by a friend's mother, Heidi Annette Fain of Broken Arrow. He suffered a broken cervical vertebrae and shoulder blade, as well as several serious scrapes and large cuts, one of which required staples to his scalp. Police at the scene assert Fain was driving under the influence of alcohol; her defense attorney maintains she was not.
Hunter described Fain's home as a party house, where he said teens could -- and did -- smoke cigarettes and marijuana and drink nearly every weekend.
Though prosecutors have filed criminal charges against Fain, Hunter's family doesn't think enough has been done to prevent adults who provide alcohol to minors from causing more heartache to families of teens.
The Oklahoma Alcoholic Beverages Law Enforcement Commission is working to combat the problem of underage drinking and has designated the weeks between spring break and area high school graduations as a special enforcement period.
'A stupid decision'
On July 12, Hunter called his mother to ask if he could stay the night with a friend.
Montgomery OK'd the plan but didn't know he was actually sleeping over at Fain's house. The two women had had previous disagreements and Montgomery told Hunter he wasn't to visit Fain's home any more.
Hunter said that after several hours of drinking and "hanging out" at Fain's house, a group of six teens -- including Hunter and Fain's daughter -- piled into Fain's Honda Pilot for a trip to McDonald's. Fain's defense attorney, Robert Seacat, said Fain had picked up the teens from a party elsewhere.
Hunter was seated backward in the cargo area, "like a grocery sack," he said, as Fain sped down Albany (61st) Street in Broken Arrow.
"I just knew we were going a little bit too fast but the radio was up too loud so I couldn't say anything," Hunter said. "I could tell we were on the wrong side of the road -- I just knew she was losing control -- and then I blacked out. I don't remember anything except waking up in the ditch."
Seacat contends Fain was sober when her SUV bottomed out on a hill and the vehicle's steering column broke. Police records show Fain was arrested for suspected DUI at the scene after she failed parts of a field sobriety test and a portable breath test returned a positive result for the presence of alcohol.
The Tulsa World was unable to obtain the results of a blood test taken nearly 2 1/2 hours after the wreck.
Eight months later, Hunter openly expresses regret.
"Getting in the car with a drunk driver was just a stupid decision," he said.
The westbound SUV lost control on the narrow two-lane road near 198th East Avenue, struck a tree and went into a clockwise spin, traffic investigators determined. Hunter was thrown from the car and two other teens were hospitalized.
Police said Fain was driving at least 20 miles over the 35-mph speed limit but suspect the SUV's speed was likely more than that at the time of the crash.
Hunter regained consciousness and gave emergency responders his home phone number. Medics with the Broken Arrow Fire Department called Montgomery just after 11 p.m., about 30 minutes after the crash.
They told her Hunter had been admitted to Saint Francis Hospital after a serious car wreck but were unable to provide specific details about his injuries.
She called Hunter's father, Shane Emerson, en route to the hospital and both awaited news on his condition.
They were eventually allowed to see him but had no idea what to expect.
"All we saw was he was in a neck brace. (He had) staples in his head, blood just everywhere. It was pretty terrifying," Emerson said.
Wagoner's County prosecutors charged Fain with causing great bodily injury while driving under the influence and six counts of child endangerment by DUI in August.
Seacat told the Tulsa World that prosecutors planned to drop the felony charges against Fain; however, Wagoner County Lead Assistant District Attorney Stephanie Milburn said the ongoing negotiations were confidential.
Hunter's family is aware Fain's felony charges could be dropped and are concerned about a potential lack of consequence.
"I'm just afraid that nothing is going to change unless somebody dies," Montgomery said. "I would hate for another parent or family to go through what we've been through. It affected all of us."
Fain was charged Tuesday with three misdemeanors: furnishing alcohol to a person under 21, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and permitting invitees under 21 to possess or consume alcohol -- a violation of the "social host" law enacted Nov. 1, 2011.
Under the social host law, an adult who allows minors to drink at social events is subject to fines starting at $500 for the first offense. Fines increase for subsequent offenses.
Violations resulting in injury or death are punishable by as much as five years in prison and a fine between $2,500 and $5,000.
The charges stem from an encounter an ABLE Commission agent documented having with juveniles outside Fain's home on Feb. 24 at 1:30 a.m. The agent found five teens who reportedly smelled of alcohol outside the residence. They said Fain supplied beer and liquor and allowed them to drink it at her house.
ABLE agents are zeroing in on similar incidents as the school year winds down and spring celebrations like prom come and go.
Unintended consequences
Minors who consume alcohol most frequently do so at home or at a friend's home, oftentimes with an adult providing the beer or liquor, according to the ABLE Commission.
Some parents justify underage drinking with the assumption that their home is a "safe place" for minors to imbibe, but serious or fatal accidents and other risky behavior can still happen, said ABLE Agent Erik Smoot.
"No parent has the right to make that decision for another parent," he said.
"If you want to let your kid drink at your house, that's your deal ... What we've seen in every community, there are some parents who feel this way so what happens is those are just the houses kids go to."
Throughout the year, the commission targets underage drinking by conducting fake ID and keg log checks as well as what they call party patrols. Agents ramp up those efforts annually in March, April and May.
Minors attempting to purchase alcohol directly can expect to unknowingly encounter an ABLE agent posing as a liquor store employee during the special enforcement period.
Keg logs, which liquor stores are required to keep, identify people who purchase kegs and give agents a starting point for seeking out events or house parties where minors might be drinking.
Agents routinely encounter adults who tell them they prevent teens from driving after parties, but Smoot said waiting a few hours to sober up isn't completely effective after a night of binge drinking. Furthermore, any traceable amount of alcohol equates to driving under the influence if a motorist is under the age of 21.
"Parents just don't think about the consequences," he said.
A heavy cost
Underage drinking cost Oklahoma residents $831 million in 2010, according to the national Underage Drinking Enforcement Training Center. Nearly $500 million of that total resulted from youth violence attributed to underage drinking. The costs include medical care and work loss, according to the organization. The remaining contributing categories, ranging in cost from $97.9 million to $17.8 million, include traffic crashes, high-risk sex and fetal alcohol syndrome.
To report underage drinking to the ABLE Commission anonymously call 1-866-894-3517.
Amanda Bland 918-581-8413
amanda.bland@tulsaworld.com
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