Frequently Asked Questions

(Skip to How To Report a Suspected Underage Drinking Party)

1. What is ZAP?
ZAP is an acronym for Zero Alcohol Providers. It is a best practices strategy that utilizes community, law enforcement, and judicial systems to treat underage drinking parties as a serious crime and prosecute those individuals who provide the alcohol.

2. What makes ZAP different from the way officers might typically handle underage drinking?
The ZAP protocol treats an underage drinking party like a crime scene, rather than a public nuisance. Depending on the situation a search warrant may be obtained, the premises surrounded, and additional officers called out to help conduct interviews, collect evidence and ticket underage drinkers. Ultimately, identifying who provided the alcohol and charging them with a crime is the goal.

3. What happens to those charged with crimes after ZAP protocol concludes?
Underage drinkers are processed through the legal system including a pre-assessment for chemical abuse and meaningful consequences. Adult providers are also prosecuted and held accountable for supplying alcohol to those underage.

4. Do all Rice County officers have to participate in ZAP?
No. Only trained officers who volunteer to be a part of the program will be involved in ZAP situations in a different city. Trained ZAP officers from neighboring communities may be called out to assist efforts depending on staffing needs. All law enforcement officers in the county are encouraged to use the ZAP protocol in treating youth drinking as a crime.

5. When and how does an officer utilize ZAP?
Each department has an identified lead officer(s) for the ZAP program. The jurisdiction where the party is occurring is responsible for assessing the party scene and determining personnel needs before calling out ZAP Team officers. Officers from that jurisdiction should be called out first, and then from the next closest agency until staffing levels are met.  Each agency is responsible for calling out their officers. The use of ZAP protocol by local jurisdictions does not require the involvement of neighboring communities’ officers unless that need is determined.

6. How is ZAP paid for?
ZAP was initially paid for through a grant from the Minnesota Institute of Public Health. It covered officer overtime and community awareness campaigns. THERE IS STILL MONEY AVAILABLE FOR ZAP through local funding from the Rice County Chemical Health Coalition. This money is available to cover officer overtime on ZAP callouts; the individual departments do not bear the overtime costs of ZAP.

7. How is the community involved in ZAP?
The members of the community play an important role in reporting information about underage drinking parties to law enforcement. Any call to law enforcement after hours will be received at the regional dispatch center. The public should request to have an officer call them back. Specific information about the situation should be reported at that time. The public can expect that law enforcement officers will take action as determined by the situation and the information available.

8. Does ZAP work?
ZAP has been highly successful in many counties across MN – most notably, Freeborn and Chisago counties. Although ZAP efforts have been successful in metro areas as well, many of the thriving ZAP projects reside in rural counties like Rice. Law enforcement in ZAP communities has reported that after a few ZAP callouts, the number of underage drinking parties went down. Youth often cited fear of being caught as their main reason for not attending underage drinking parties. Cooperation among law enforcement agencies and enthusiasm about the protocol has made this strategy work!

How to Report a Suspected Underage Drinking Party

1. Gather Information

Gather as much specific information as you can before calling law enforcement.

2. Call Law Enforcement

Daytime: Call the agency responsible for the location of the party. If you’re not sure, call the Rice County Sheriff’s Office. After Hours: Calls go to the Dispatch Center. You can ask to speak directly to an officer on duty for the location of the party. If no one is available, you can ask to have an officer call you back.

Rice County Sheriff’s Office - 507-334-4391
Dundas Police Department – 507-645-5252
Faribault Police Department – 507-334-4305
Lonsdale Police Department – 507-744-2300
Morristown Police Department – 507-685-4190
Northfield Police Department – 507-645-4475

3. Explain Your Concern

Say why you are calling. You will be asked for your name, but you may request that your name not appear on any reports about the incident or you may remain anonymous. Give as much information and details as you can. You may later realize you can provide additional information. Ask what to do if that happens.

In an emergency, call 911! Thank you for caring about the health and safety of Rice County youth!