Not for the two main underage drinking charges, if every condition in the law is met. Business and Professions Code section 25667 makes a person under 21 immune from prosecution for possessing alcohol in public and for their own purchase or on-premises drinking when they are the first to call 911 for alcohol-related medical help, but the protection is not automatic and it does not cover every charge that could follow that night.

What the immunity actually requires

The immunity applies only when the minor establishes all of the following:

  • They called 911 and reported that either they themselves, or another person, needed medical assistance because of alcohol consumption.
  • They were “the first person to make the 911 report.”
  • If they were reporting that someone else needed help, they “remained on the scene with the other person until that medical assistance arrived and cooperated with medical assistance and law enforcement personnel.”

All of these have to be true together. A minor who calls after someone else already reported it does not qualify, and a minor who reports a friend’s emergency and then leaves before help arrives does not qualify either.

The third condition, remaining on the scene and cooperating, is written for the situation where the minor called about someone else. Read on its own terms, it does not add a separate requirement when the minor’s own alcohol poisoning is what prompted the call.

What charges the immunity actually covers

The immunity is specific, not a blanket shield from every alcohol-related consequence. It protects the minor only from prosecution under two exact charges: possessing alcohol in public under Business and Professions Code section 25662(a), and a minor’s own purchase or on-premises consumption of alcohol under Business and Professions Code section 25658(b). Nothing in the statute extends this immunity to any other charge. One related benefit is written into section 25658 itself: an earlier incident whose prosecution was barred by this immunity does not count as a prior violation when the court sets the penalty for a later purchase or consumption charge.

What it does not cover

The law is explicit about what it leaves out. The statute itself says it shall “not provide immunity from criminal prosecution for any offense that involves activities made dangerous by the consumption of alcoholic beverages.” It names three examples directly: the alcohol-connected reckless driving offense under Vehicle Code section 23103, cross-referenced through Vehicle Code section 23103.5; driving under the influence under Vehicle Code section 23152; and DUI causing injury under Vehicle Code section 23153. If the same night that led to the 911 call also involved the minor driving after drinking, that driving-related exposure is untouched by this immunity. Drug overdoses fall under a different statute, Health and Safety Code section 11376.5, which has its own conditions and covers drug offenses rather than these alcohol charges.

Evidence that can establish the conditions were met

Because “first to call” and “remained on the scene” are factual questions, not automatic assumptions, records can matter later: the timestamped 911 call log, dispatch records, and any paramedic, witness, or officer who can confirm the minor stayed until help arrived and cooperated once it did.

If your family is facing an alcohol-related charge after a 911 call, the Law Offices of David S. Chesley can check the call log, the timing, and what happened on scene against these exact conditions. Call (800) 755-5174 to discuss your case.