Thanks to a relatively new city ordinance, two Austin residents were ticketed for allowing minors to drink alcohol.
According to police reports, Britny Bergland, 20, and Dakota Amick, 19, received citations early Saturday morning under the city's social host ordinance after several minors were seen drinking in the front yard of a home they rent on Eighth Avenue Northeast.
The pair were hosting a birthday party for a friend, they told officers.
The ordinance, which was approved in November 2009, makes it a misdemeanor to knowingly allow minors to drink without taking steps to prevent it.
The state has no specific law regarding socials hosts, just penalties for those who furnish alcohol to minors.
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Because of that, more than 30 cities and counties around Minnesota have joined Austin in establishing their own restrictions.
A law enforcement official said there have been three or four citations given locally.
Amick also received a ticket for minor consumption, along with two other party-goers, the report said.
