It's hard to be young, and if you are young and on your own, that can make it even more difficult, can't it? When we, as human beings, have a solid support system of friends and family, we hope that we can end up choosing a life path that is somewhat productive.

That is not to say that all of us are destined to be captains of industry, or whatever. But what is important is the hope that our young, especially, don't take a path that leads them to trouble.

Something we have followed before is a party house that even the local newspapers have followed. Since the article appeared, the "actors" referenced in the article have made (in some but not all cases) repeated appearences in the police briefs of the local papers for all sorts of things that landed them in the district and county court systems. And the crying shame of it is that none of these folks are particularly old, and yet they are setting a life pattern that could end up irrevocably bad.

We have written about how we feel about the problems facing the youth of today and once asked Perhaps Main Line Teens Need More Parenting and Less Pampering?, as well as promoting excellent editorials like the one which appeared in the Main Line Times titled Parents who cheat the law are sending kids the wrong message By: Paula Singer .

However, not all kids have parents there to guide them. Sometimes parents are there but it doesn't help....Reference the sad tale of Stephen Meloni :

BREAKING NEWS
By: Margaret Gibbons 03/10/2007

Lower Merion resident Stephen L. Meloni Friday would have been a sophomore at the University of Vermont, likely enjoying spring break.
Instead, because of his reckless driving of a car filled with teens while high on alcohol and drugs that resulted in the death of one friend and the permanent disfigurement of another almost one year ago, Meloni will be spending his college years behind bars in a state prison.

Montgomery County Judge Rhonda L. Daniele sentenced Meloni, 20, of Gladwyne, to 4 1/2 to 10 years in prison to be followed by a six-year probationary period.

And then there is the case of parents that you can either love or hate: Andy and Tammi Reed. Their personal heartbreak and tragedy is undeniable, no matter where you sit on what two of their sons Britt and Garrett have done. And look at Britt and Garrett? Are their young lives salvageable? Or have they ruined their lives at a young age?

Which brings us full circle to where we were headed: how do we as a community in a modern age help direct our young positively? What should we ask of those seeking public office with regard to that? And then, with the case of these who are young, but are also legal aged adults, what can you do to encourage them to find their way in life where they won't be starring in police briefs and ending up as frequent visitors to court?

The April 2, 2008 edition of Main Line Life newspaper features an interesting brief from Radnor, and it involves the owner of the oft discussed North Wayne Party House. He is a legal adult now, and although we heard from neighbors that the house had been relatively quiet since the last bust whenever that was, as per the police briefs, it appears that this young man, now an adult, has learned nothing from his experiences. All the times of the police busting parites and busting his friends and acquaintances has taught him nothing. This guy got popped March 8th, 2008 on a charge he escaped by the skin of his teeth in December, 2006 when his house and his friends made the newspaper as an actual article: Jake Rapp has been busted for furnishing alcohol to minors. That's kinda a big deal. Here is what was reported in the police brief (it is not online that we can find, so we will transcribe verbatim):

Furnishing alcohol to minors
Charles J. Sellers, Jr., 22, and Jacob M. Rapp, 22, both of Wayne, were charged with furnishing alcohol to minors after buying a bottle of liquor for a 16-year-old March 8.

A 16 year old hypothetically has a driver's license, so what if that kid had drunk his bottle of hooch and had then climbed behind the wheel?

Now this constant association with legal minors is what helped get this Jake guy's house busted in the first place. No one knows what goes on inside this guy's mind, but now he is going to get smacked with something that is way more serious then the disorderly conduct and the obscene language/gestures thing he was convicted of in May 2007 (reference Magesterial District Justice Case Docket Number: NT-0000398-07, Complaint/Incident # P5563037-4
CHARGES: 18 § 5503 §§ A3 DISORDER CONDUCT OBSCENE LANG/GEST - SUMMARY Guilty Plea (Lower Court)CASE ACCOUNTING:Total Due: $296.41 Total Paid: $296.41)

This is what his new charges look like on Magesterial DJ Level, and where it was bumped to county court:

Docket Number: CR-0000049-08
Criminal Docket
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA
v.
RAPP, JACOB
OTN: K 338779-0
File Date: 03/09/2008
Case Disp: Waived for Court
Disp Date: 03/25/2008
Complaint/Incident # 080003517

Bail Type: Unsecured
Bail Status: Set
Bail Amount: $10000.00
Status Date: 03/09/2008
Posting Date:
O/S Amount: $10000.00
CHARGES
# Charge Description Disposition
1. 18 § 903 §§ A1 CONSPIRE SELL/FURNISH LIQUOR ETC MINOR Waived for Court (Lower Court)
2. 18 § 6310.1 §§ A SELL/FURNISH LIQUOR TO MINOR

***********************************
COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF DELAWARE COUNTY
DOCKET
Docket Number: CP-23-CR-0002052-2008
Court Case
CRIMINAL DOCKET
Page 1 of 3
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
v.
Jacob Rapp
CASE INFORMATION
Cross Court Docket Nos: CR-0000049-08
Judge Assigned: Date Filed: 04/02/2008 Initiation Date: 03/08/2008
OTN: K3387790 Lower Court Docket No: CR-0000049-08

STATUS INFORMATION
Case Status: Active Status Date Processing Status Arrest Date: 03/08/2008
04/02/2008 Awaiting Filing of Information
04/02/2008 Awaiting Formal Arraignment
Complaint Date: 03/09/2008
CALENDAR EVENTS
Formal Arraignment 04/24/2008 9:00 am

CHARGES
Seq. Grade Statute Statute Description Offense OTN
Date
Orig Seq.
1 Criminal Conspiracy Engaging -
Sell/Furnish Liquor Etc Minor
1 M3 18 § 6310.1 §§A 03/08/2008 K33

So now dude has a real lawyer,and the potential for real trouble along with a "record". He is 22 years old. He has set himself a path of trouble. And the deeper in he gets, the harder it is to climb out.

At this point, is someone like this responsible for themselves? Or can we as a society do something better so people like him don't get to this point? Of course, this is where any of us ask "does this person have any family that could get him pointed in a different direction?" and "Does his family care?"

And then there is the one question no one likes to keep asking: "does he care about what he is doing to his life?"

There are no easy answers, are there?