As Stated in UMD's Residence Hall Guidebook:
The possession, consumption, and/or association with possession of alcoholic beverages and/or possession of alcohol containers, regardless of age, is prohibited in University residences and grounds.
All people present in a room in which a violation occurs will be considered to be in violation, whether or not they have personally consumed alcohol.
As it stands, UMD has a very strict alcohol policy. While this effort for safety is reassuring for parents and students alike, the policies upheld by UMD regarding alcohol may need some reevaluation.
The rules explained in the Residence Hall Guidebook are straight-forward and rigorously enforced. For example, if students Becky and Mary are roommates and Mary is drinking in their room with a few friends while Becky is studying, Becky will still get in trouble if Mary gets caught. Whether Becky has been drinking or not is unimportant.
In defense of UMD's alcohol policy, it is very difficult to regulate the almost 3,000 students who live in on-campus housing. A strict alcohol policy may deter other students from drinking on campus.
Possible Alternatives to Guilty By Association:
Personal Experiences:
*Names have been changed.
~Wanda* was in her friend's dorm with five other people. All of them had been drinking, and two of the students do not go to UMD. When a Night Advisor came to tell them to turn down their music, she saw a case of beer and asked all of the students in the room for their ID's. The students who did not go to UMD didn't give the NA their ID's right away, so the NA was forced to call the police to ID the students. When the police came they gave everyone breathalizers and handed out tickets for underage consumption. One of the students had not been drinking and blew all zero's on his breathalizer; however, he still got in trouble--guilty by association.
~It was move-in day at UMD and Thelma* was unpacking her things. Her roomate, Louise*, had just arrived and called over some friends who do not attend UMD. While the two people were walking to the apartment, they were drinking beer. They stopped to ask a random person where the apartment was because they were lost. It happened to be a Resident Advisor who asked them to throw out their beer and they did. Even though the incident involved people who did not attend UMD and it didn't even happen in the apartment, all four roomates got in trouble. Three of them, including Thelma, did not know who the two people were or that they were even coming over. Nice way to start the year.
Links:
UMD Residence Hall Guidebook.... http://www.d.umn.edu/housing/guidebooks/resguideweb.htm