30 Whitman Students Receive Alcohol Citations Following House Party

Thirty juveniles received alcohol citations for attending a Bethesda house party this month where liquor was available, Montgomery County police said Monday. And according to a report in Walt Whitman’s student newspaper, The Black and White, those cited were Whitman students and some will face on-campus discipline.

The house party was reported Dec. 1 in the 6200 block of Wiscasset place in Bethesda, according to police spokeswoman Officer Janelle Smith.

Police spokeswoman Officer Britta Thomas told The Black and White that Fire and Rescue was called after one guest appeared to be highly intoxicated. Police who responded issued sobriety tests and cited some students for alcohol possession, according to the report.

Smith told Patch that 30 juveniles were issued alcohol-related citations. Three adults also were cited, Smith said, but the nature of the citations wasn’t known.

Whitman Principal Alan Goodwin told The Black and White that he learned of the party from athletic director Andy Wetzel, who said some Whitman student athletes told their coaches about the party.

The athletes involved are facing a one-game suspension, according to the report.

Goodwin did not immediately return an email from Patch seeking comment.

In December of 2011, three dozen Whitman students were temporarily suspended from extracurricular activities after they attended an off-campus house party where underage drinking was reported.

The school’s response prompted debate on Patch about on-campus consequences for off-campus behavior.

Read the full report at Whitman’s Black and White.