TEXAS' TEEN SMOKERS SEE NEW LAW AS A DRAG

Some Texas teen-age smokers say they'll be more discreet when they light up
their cigarettes today.

But don't expect them to go cold turkey, even with a new law that can
impose fines of up to $250 and possibly suspend teen-age driver's licenses.

"I think the new law sucks," said Josh Paiz, 14, a student at Lake Jackson
Intermediate School.

"We should have a right to do it. We're gonna die someday. We just may die
a little younger," said his 13-year-old buddy, Billy Terrill. He said his
parents, both smokers, sometimes buy him cigarettes -- a practice that is
still allowed under the new law.

"I told my mom and dad, 'When you quit I'll quit,' and they said, 'Can't
help you there,'" Terrill said.

Fourteen-year-old Matt Sharp's plan is simply to go underground.

"I think I won't smoke hardly in public," he said.

Some aspects of the tougher anti-smoking law, adopted by the Legislature
last spring, took effect Sept. 1. But the law's real bite comes into play
today with the penalty phase for tobacco consumption and possession by
people under age 18.

Endorsed by cancer-fighting groups and state health officials, the new law
makes possession, purchase, consumption or receipt of cigarettes or other
tobacco products by a minor a violation of the state health code. The
exception to that is when the minor is accompanied by an adult parent,
guardian or spouse -- meaning you can buy, smoke or chew tobacco if your
parents let you do it around them.

A violation is punishable by a fine of up to $250, but the fine would be
suspended if the violator attends a tobacco awareness program. A court also
may require the parent or guardian of the defendant to attend.

A young smoker who blows off the seminar and doesn't comply within 90 days
will wind up losing his driver's license for up to six months.

Several other smoking-related regulations arrived with the New Year,
including a requirement that retailers check the identification of all
buyers who look younger than age 27. Retailers also must begin training
employees in the new law and they must safeguard cigarette vending machines
to prevent unfettered access by minors.

While the state is only now cracking down on minors who possess tobacco,
some Texas cities are already doing so. Lubbock, for example, approved an
identical measure two years ago. Police there just last week charged a
17-year-old with illegal possession of tobacco.

The state anti-smoking law was authored by Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo,
who said it was needed because minors felt no punitive consequences from
prior laws, which made it a crime to sell tobacco to a minor but didn't
effectively punish young users.

The House sponsor, Rep. Hugo Berlanga, D-Corpus Christi, said the measures
were the kind of drastic steps needed to offset the pervasive influence of
tobacco advertising on children, which he said made Joe Camel and the
Marlboro man better known than Mickey Mouse or Barney.

Some youngsters said they were glad to see a statewide crackdown on an
unhealthy habit.

Cynthia Rodriguez, 16, a nonsmoking sophomore at Mayde Creek High School
near Katy, said the new law could be "a wake-up call for teen-agers who
need to be made aware that smoking is a serious issue. Actions need to be
taken so their eyes will be opened tothe hazards. This is for the benefit
of kids."

"Too many kids our age are smoking. They think it makes them look older or
they want to be different," said Sean Roden, 14, of Crosby.

Gina Monteleone, another Crosby 14-year-old, agreed. "If the new law makes
kids attend that class and then they stop smoking, that would be good.
Maybe kids need to think they could be caught," she said.

But Courtenay Morris, a sophomore at Clear Lake High School, wonders how
effectively the law can be enforced.

"Who's going to catch them?" asked the 15-year-old nonsmoker.

However, one young smoker is using the new law to gather her New Year's
resolve to quit -- along with her dad.

"I'm quitting now because of the new law," said 16-year-old Morgan
Wikowsky, a sophomore at Mayde Creek High School. "My dad is quitting with
me ... I've smoked two years, about a pack a day. It's real hard to quit
... I started because of friends."