Scotts Bluff County M.I.P. Task Force
The MIP Task Force was created to address the problem of underage drinking. All the law enforcement agencies in Scotts Bluff County have come together to provide assistance and support. A grant from Nebraska Highway Safety has provided funding for this very exciting project. A van was purchased to provide transportation. Thirteen officers from various law enforcement agencies provide the man power. They use night vision cameras, portable radios, and preliminary breath testing equipment to gather evidence and make arrests on the scene.
Anyone can activate the task force if they know of, or suspect, a party where alcohol will be served. The phone number to call is ###-###-####. The information will be imparted to the task force where preliminary investigation will be conducted, followed by an activating of the task force. All names of arrested parties are being released to the media who in turn is publishing the information. This is an additional deterrent, perhaps to make the young people think twice before attending such parties.
A third deterrent for young people is in the long range planning stages - a peer judging court, where the offending persons will be tried in a court of their peers. The schools will be included in the planning and implementing of this phase of the effort, to help these young people learn to make better decisions. It is believed that this may be the best possible deterrent, because peer pressure is such a large factor in teen years! |
