HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — Prom season is upon us.
Michigan State Police Trooper Martin Miller says senior prom is a time when graduating high school students practice some adult behaviors. But, he said, teens need to proceed with caution.
For starters, teen drivers with graduated licences need to refrain from cell phone use, he said, and limit the number of other teens in the car.
“They need to make a grown-up decision, and not give in to peer pressure,” he said. “Wear the seatbelt — they’re required to do so, but they’re growing adults [and will say] ‘I’m old enough, I don’t need to…’ Ah, yes, you do.”
Miller encourages parents to talk to their teens about other adult behaviors.
“You also have that becoming of a young adult, that they will be tempted by a lot of things out there — alcohol, tobacco, different drugs, sexual activity,” he said. “These things will be out there, during prom.”
That’s why responsible adult chaperones are so necessary, he said.
Miller reminded parents to refuse to serve alcohol to their under-age teens — even if the teens are spending the night at the family home — or expect to face stiff penalties.
