On January 24, a 16-year old boy from Powder Springs, Georgia, crashed his car into an oncoming vehicle. Garrett Reed, a star football player at Harrison High School, died instantly. Police believe he had been drinking.According to police, the investigation revealed that a classmate’s mother served alcohol to Reed.

Whitfield was released on a $10,000 bond and awaits a court date in April. If convicted, she could receive up to a year in jail and fines totaling thousands of dollars.

“What we have to realize is that our kids do think they are invincible,” said Patti Agatston, a mother of another Harrison High School teenager who lives in Reed’s neighborhood. “We can’t be enablers. We’ve got to be adults and say ‘no.’ ”

At least ten states including Virginia, Minnesota and New Mexico-and Georgia, where Garrett’s accident occurred, allow parents to give their own child alcohol, according to the Alcohol Policy Information System, a federal website that tracks alcohol laws. While At least 24 states have enacted social hosting laws that fine parents several thousand dollars for each offense, said Jim Mosher, an expert tracking alcohol policies at the National Conference of State Legislatures. The fines, he said, are an effective deterrent.

Ultimately, parents need to step up and take responsibility, said Shawna Snapp of Blue River, Oregon. Her son, Ryan Snapp, nicknamed “Snapper,” died two years ago in a car accident. He was 17 and the teenage driver had been drinking alcohol obtained from an adult.

“We’re not here as parents to be their best friends,” Snapp said. “We are here to guide them for life.”