Being grounded will be the least of these kids’ worries.
Seven teens, including six juveniles, are facing felony charges for causing damage to the course at the Grand Ridge Golf Club in St. Charles Parish. Specifically, the areas around the 11th, 12th and 13th holes were damaged. All of the suspects are boys who range in age from 13 to 17.
“They took two golf carts, went joy riding and really damaged a lot of the greens,” says St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office spokesperson Sgt. Jenni Barrette.
The teens are charged with criminal damage and/or unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. Sgt. Barrette says the 17-year-old, Hunter Graffia of Destrehan, is facing an additional charge.
“He had an additional charge of contributing to the delinquency of juveniles,” Sgt. Barrette says, “only because he’s of age and was with juveniles that were underage.”
Graffia was booked in the Nelson Coleman Correctional Center.
Barrette says these teens do not represent the kids of St. Charles Parish as a whole.
“We had this very, very small group of kids that got bored and thought this was the best thing to do to cure their boredom,” says Barrette.
Some of the charges are felonies because the damages to the golf course exceed $1,000, although golf course management has not released a specific dollar amount of the damages.
Weather permitting, the golf course is still playable, albeit with a few additional hazards on the 11th through the 13th holes.