Arizona state law gives ASU officials the authority to remove students from their residence halls temporarily or even permanently if they arrive there drunk and make a scene.
But ASU Residential Life policies are more likely to place drunken dorm residents in a counseling session than on the street.
This year, ASU's Residential Life adapted its alcohol policy to state that a student who returns to their residence hall intoxicated and is a "minor in consumption" is breaking the law. Also, paraphernalia such as beer bongs and funnels are banned, and students may not drink in the halls.
Students of legal drinking age must still abide by the rules and policies of their respective residence halls.
Students would not likely be automatically removed from the halls if Residential Life officials suspected they were drunk, said Misty Calleroz, associate director of Residential Life.
However, she said the mention of the state's "minor in consumption" definition in the Residential Life student handbook serves as a reminder to students that "returning to the hall intoxicated" is illegal under state law.
"State law is the overriding policy," Calleroz said. "We include that language in the policy to let students know they are not exempt from state law just because they are at a state university."
Calleroz said it was highly unlikely that a student who arrived quietly at a residence hall while drunk would face consequences and that only the most severe cases would get attention.
Students who develop a pattern of excessive alcohol use combined with rowdy behavior could face "judicial proceedings" with the Office of Student Judicial Affairs, Residential Life, or ASU Department of Public Safety, Calleroz said.
Calleroz said a student who arrived at a residence hall drunk and disturbed other residents could generally be considered a candidate for an alcohol education program or even termination from the residence hall.
Most students would eventually have to participate in special programs to educate students about the dangers of alcohol if confronted by Residential Life officials.
Almost all of the students affected by the alcohol policy are under 21 and should abstain from drinking or being drunk in the halls, said Marcia Harmon, state executive director of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
"All of you that are in that microcosm of life are going to have to live by rules," Harmon said of college students' lives. "If it's underage, it's against the law. I don't want anything to happen to anyone."
Harmon said her son was the survivor of an alcohol-related crash that killed his best friend during a spring break trip, and her niece was killed in a separate crash while she was in college.
But Jonathan Confer, a Barrett Honors College senator, said he was concerned about RAs having to enforce the alcohol policies.
"I agree we shouldn't have intoxicated people in the dorms, whether there or coming back," Confer said. "I'm not sure [Residential Life] should put the responsibility on RAs."
Confer said he wondered whether RAs would be able to accurately determine if their residents were too drunk to remain in the residence halls.
"I don't know if our RAs are qualified to diagnose whether students are intoxicated," Confer said. "This is something police officers have a lot of trouble with."
Reach the reporter at nicole.saidi@asu.edu.
