When you think back at appropriate party ideas for a 14-year-old, you may think about a party at a movie theater or bowling alley. Perhaps a trip to the mall. This year, options are limited — and to be safe, all gatherings should wait until next year. But one teenager's parents thought differently by renting a party bus for their child's big celebration.
The concept of a party bus might be fun, but only with a small group. Also, parents should probably be there to accompany the minors involved. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case here.
The unmarked bus holding approximately 60 maskless teens entered the Hilltop Plaza Shopping Center in Mount Healthy, Ohio, late at night, causing cops on the scene to get suspicious.
Based on the lack of supervision and space, fights ended up breaking out. Police officers stated that one person was arrested. "Several fights broke out which necessitated calls for assistance from other police agencies," the Mount Healthy Police Department said on Facebook. "One juvenile attempted to strike Mt. Healthy Police Officer Dunn and was arrested."
But it wasn't just the kids who were out of control. The bus driver also apparently wouldn't listen to the police. "The bus driver disregarded the officers command to reboard the juveniles and fled from the scene leaving the crowd of approximately 60 juveniles in a very agitated state for officers to deal with," the statement continued. "Officers worked over the next hour to break up numerous fights and distance the juveniles."
The story gets more perplexing. "It was determined that a parent had organized a Party Bus for a child’s fourteenth birthday party," the statement explained. "The bus traveled from Downtown Cincinnati to Mt. Healthy discharging the juveniles in the Hilltop Plaza without permission from the shopping center ownership. Our investigation continues but we have determined the original invitation was posted on Social Media as an 'OPEN INVITE'."
That means that the parents of this teenager openly invited anyone who wanted to show up. Aside from the health crisis, that's just dangerous. Aside from ignoring social distancing and failing to keep a bubble, these parents welcomed strangers to celebrate their 14-year-old's birthday party outside of their own home.
"The parents responsible have been identified and will be charged with violations of the Governor's Orders and we are consulting with the Prosecutor's Office in hopes of adding additional criminal charges for the parents and the others involved," the statement continued. Then it outlined the proper curfew: "It shall be unlawful for any minor under the age of 14 to be or remain in or upon a public place within the city between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m."
Speaking of the health crisis, many found it a bit comical that such an unhealthy situation was happening in a town called Mount Healthy. However, the police made sure to note that nobody on the bus was actually from there. They were only traveling to the shopping center located there.
"Parents – it is your responsibility to manage your children," the statement concluded. "Mount Healthy Police will not tolerate blatant law violations especially when such action endangers our community, our officers, and public health. The Hilltop Plaza is not public property and should not be used without the permission of the owners. It should be noted that none of those involved live in Mount Healthy."
People from the area were shocked about what happened. Based on the time of night, the number of people, and the lack of supervision, it seems as if this birthday idea was doomed from the start. "What charter bus service would allow this during the worst part of the pandemic?" wrote Angie Powell on Facebook. "The parents, the bus service and these juveniles should all be held accountable. Thank you MHPD for trying to control the chaos when the parents neglected their supervision roles."
It's also alarming to hear that there were 60 kids on the bus, meaning that plenty of parents were either lied to about the details of the event or also thought it was OK. It's unclear as to whether or not those parents knew this was a party with an open invite. They should feel lucky that the kids were stopped by police, since it seems as if the rest of the event would have been even more disastrous with no supervision.
In general, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention doesn't advise having parties right now. The CDC suggests that any celebrations happen virtually, and it doesn't believe that buses are a great way to travel if at all possible. "Airports, bus stations, train stations, public transport, gas stations, and rest stops are all places travelers can be exposed to the virus in the air and on surfaces," the CDC says.
While much of the attention on this story is about the crowding and lack of face masks, it's important to realize that this is an odd scenario in any circumstance. It's also unclear as to why the party was so late, or what the kids were planning on doing. There have been no hints as to whether or not alcohol was involved.
The situation could have ended up even worse. Hopefully, this was just an extremely bad call that the parents made. Perhaps they didn't realize the bus would be so full. But hopefully it'll serve as a lesson. At the age of 14, you still need to be supervised — especially on a party bus.
According to the Kansas City Star, the COVID-19 concerns in the region are truly valid. The Cincinnati and Mount Healthy areas of Ohio reportedly have hospital intensive care units that are already at 80% capacity. Even for COVID-19 cases that aren't deadly, that's still a bed being taken away from someone who might have another medical emergency. That, in itself, is reason enough for the community to panic over an event like this.
This will definitely be a "party" that this 14-year-old will remember forever. This is a good opportunity for parents everywhere to reiterate why events like this can be so dangerous to the community right now. It's hard not to celebrate a birthday among friends this year, but putting a bunch of teens on a bus to a shopping center late at night isn't the solution.
