A report of a young female sleeping on a front lawn of a house on Hecker Avenue brought police, who then learned that the 19-year-old had walked away from a party with underage drinking on Harbor Road.
Darien police gave this account (containing accusations not proven in court):
When police responded to the report, which came in early on Thursday morning, they came upon the young woman on the shoulder of the eastbound travel side of the road, curled up and asleep. She was intoxicated, with a strong odor of alcohol on her, and also so incoherent that police couldn’t understand what she was saying.
Post 53-Darien EMS was called to the scene, and ambulance personnel were able to identify the woman as a Darien resident. She remained very confused and incoherent, but was finally able to explain that she had been at a house party earlier in the evening. She couldn’t or wouldn’t give police the address.
Soon two friends showed up at the scene. The two, who had been drinking, told police that they were looking for her after she wandered off the property where the party took place. Each was reluctant to say where the party was. The police report did not mention whether or not the two had been driving.
The young woman who had been sleeping was taken to Stamford Hospital for evaluation and possible treatment. She wasn’t charged with any legal violations.
Police went to the location of the party, which appeared to be over by the time cops arrived. It was less than a mile south of where the young woman was found.
Most of the occupants of the house were asleep when police arrived, and no one appeared intoxicated or in need of medical attention.
There was plenty of evidence of drinking — with beer spilled on floors throughout the house and even on the walls of the front foyer and rear patio. Outdoors, several lights were on and police saw an empty 18-pack of beer.
The back yard was strewn with garbage, half-full beers and empty plastic cups. Indoors, the kitchen table has a number of cups and beer cans on it, and garbage and remnants of food were stewn about the kitchen and patio.
While inside the house, a police officer reported that his feet were sticking to the floor, presumably because of the beer drying on it.
People at the house said there had been 10 to 15 people at the party (eight were present when police came), but police believe many more were there.
The host of the party, Maeve Cutts, 19, of Harbor Road, was arrested on a charge of providing alcohol to minors, a misdemeanor. She was issued a misdemeanor summons to appear Thursday, Aug. 20 in state Superior Court in Stamford.
All the people in the house were 18 to 20 years old, with the exception of one 21-year-old woman. Darien Police Department policy is to release underage drinkers to their parents or other responsible parties who will get them home, and that was done in this case.
Cutts was released to parents of a friend of hers.