Students who decide to throw massive house parties are also throwing the metaphorical dice. Sometimes, they end up rolling well and cashing in. Other times, the house takes them for $73,500.
UW-Madison sophomore Brandon Dudley and his six roommates, who live at 417 W. Mifflin St., hosted such a party Jan. 29 when six police officers arrived and began issuing tickets. The following Sunday, the officers returned and presented the shocked roommates with a grand total of $10,500 in fines per person.
As rumors spread, concern has risen among many UW-Madison students. On a campus so seemingly soaked in alcohol, the fines appear to some to be wildly inconsistent and excessive.
The 154 tickets the roommates received included procuring alcohol for minors, dispensing alcohol without a permit, underage possession of alcohol and a noise violation.
According to Mike Hanson, the Madison Police Department's public information officer, the tickets were not intended to be a threat, retaliation or warning to other students.
\It's at the discretion of the officers, sometimes the supervisors involved and also the actual party itself. Were police called to the party due to noise complaints, or were they simply on routine patrol?"" Hanson said. ""It depends on how big the party is and how many illegal people are drinking at this party.""
Slowly sifting through his 22 citations, Dudley explained he and his roommates had not even been drinking, and that nothing was particularly unusual about their party.
""It was a normal party, we were trying to pay off our utility bills which are obscene because there's no insulation in this house,"" Dudley said.
Dudley admitted their house had received noise complaints from neighbors before, and according to Officer Hanson, that could help explain their current situation.
""We're only going to go to parties if it's obvious or if there's a complaint,"" Hanson said.
UW-Madison sophomore Dave Kruser, another resident of the Mifflin house, understood that any time people throw a party they run the risk of legal trouble, but was confused about the seemingly inconsistent manner in which the tickets were issued.
""The same things happen every weekend. People have parties like this all the time,"" Kruser said.
If the police department is using large fines in order to deter underage students from drinking, it is having the intended effect, according to the roommates.
""We're definitely not going to have [another party]. It pretty much cut off our social life, and no one I know really wants to throw big parties anymore,"" Dudley said.
The roommates currently do not have enough money to pay even a small portion of the tickets and are seeking legal counsel.
""We're definitely looking at getting a lawyer for the house. We pretty much have to,"" Dudley said.
After recurring problems with alcohol-fueled events like house parties and the Halloween festivities, the Madison Police Department has expressed concern over Madison's image as a drinking town. In October, alcohol fines were raised in preparation for Halloween and according to the Police Department's most recent annual report, drinking-related offenses are consistently the most arrested offense in Madison.
In the meantime, Dudley and his roommates are stuck dealing with their punishment and the reality of thousands of dollars in fines.
""$10,500? That's a nice used car ... or tuition for a year,"" Dudley said.
