By SARI ZEIDLER
The D.A., who has earned a reputation for her hard-line approach to fighting crime, took part in a frank discussion of the issues that concern Merrick merchants.
Alcohol, drugs and Internet safety dominated the conversation at the Outback Steakhouse. "It's hard to find anyone whose life has not been affected in some way by a drunk driver," Rice said, addressing one of the issues she has emphasized during her tenure.
In addition to strengthening existing laws and helping pass new ones that make it easier to prosecute drunk drivers, Rice said, she uses education to fight what she described as an epidemic. Educational programs implemented in Nassau County's high schools, she said, are critical to fighting drunk driving.
"We are so out of touch," said Doug Mills, owner of Printing Emporium on Merrick Avenue and the father of two sons, ages 19 and 15. "We think we might know. We know nothing. So when these programs come up, you have to go see them; they are so informative."
Choices and Consequences, a program now used in high schools across the county, teaches young people about the dangers of drinking before they get behind the wheel, Rice said. She also clarified the requirements of Nassau's Social Host Law, which holds anyone over age 18 legally responsible if they provide alcohol to minors at their home.
"There isn't a meeting I go to where, if I ask the question, 'Just shout out the address where most of the house parties take place,' all of you are going to know -- whether it's because of permissive parents or parents who aren't home -- where kids congregate to drink," Rice said. "There is no safe place for kids to drink."
"We think we have good kids," Mills said. "I know I raised my kids right, but people show up. I gotta tell you, now with texting, all they have to hear is someone's parents are out. You don't even have to say you're having a party. They're coming and they're bringing" alcohol.
Rice said that parents who are not at home and do not know that alcohol is being served to minors at their home cannot be prosecuted under the Social Host law. "The whole point of this program is to explain to parents that there's no such thing as being the cool parent," she said of the law, which is meant to deter parents from allowing minors to drink under the misconception that supervised drinking is safe.
Rice also discussed the need to monitor children's online activities. "A growing crime that we have seen and that's very disturbing is that a lot of the sexual predators commit 90 percent of their crimes on the Internet," she said. Predators target minors using popular sites like Facebook or MySpace, she said, and "enter into sexually explicit conversations with our children in the hopes of making a meeting."
Nassau County police are using undercover tactics, posing as minors on the Internet to identify sexual predators, she explained, but she also urged parents to pay attention to the sites their children visit and insist on knowing all passwords.
Another Internet safety concern Rice spoke of is identity theft. "Identity theft is the number one growing crime across the world," she said, adding that the D.A.'s office offers programs that teach people how to protect their identity online and on the street.
The return of heroin as a popular drug was also on the agenda. Rice touted the county's success in reducing the number of drug dealers by focusing efforts in Hempstead, but Chamber members said they were still aware of drugs in local neighborhoods. Jeffry Alan Baldner, owner of Jeffry Alan Jewelers on Merrick Avenue, said he has seen signs of drug dealing near the Farmingdale home where he is raising two young children.
"So many parents don't realize what these little bags are," Chamber President Margaret Mueller said of small glassine bags that are used for powdered heroin, which can sell for as little as $4 per bag, according to Rice.
"They were jewelry bags when we were growing up," Mueller said. They're not jewelry bags."
Comments about this story? SZeidler@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 203.
