Dear Central Office : AA and the Law

CDO received a call from a Secretary of a meeting stating that a police officer came into their meeting looking for a suspect. He wasn’t sure how to handle this. The following are a few excerpts from an article in Box  4-5-9 entitled “A.A. and the Law” that might inform a group conscience as to how to handle such a situation.

“Alcoholics Anonymous is a microcosm of the larger society within which it exists. As such, problems often found in the outside world can also make their way into the rooms of A.A. We are not immune to the difficulties that plague the rest of humanity, and when questions of the law and its application do occasionally arrive at our doorstep, there are not always easy or simple answers…

…Legal matters, as seen through the eyes of A.A. members, can be especially disconcerting and, over the years, some A.A.s have turned to G.S.O. to help them negotiate complicated circumstances that put groups and individuals in a difficult position. A member sharing in a Fifth Step, for example, divulges the details of’ a crime that has gone unsolved. An alcoholic speaks from the floor at a meeting about difficulties at home, perhaps involving spousal or child abuse. Local police arrive at a meeting looking for an individual who has violated parole….

…As stated in the essay on Step Twelve in Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions about alcoholics, ‘We are problem people who have found a way up and out.’ With desperate pasts and difficult futures, many current and prospective members have found themselves on the wrong side of’ the law; yet A.A. as a whole has no opinion on legal matters, has no authority—legal or otherwise—to control or direct the behavior of A.A. members and groups.

While we share in a spirit of’ trust, both at meetings and individually with sponsors and friends, A.A. members are subject to the same laws as every other person. Our communications are not privileged in the legal sense nor do we have any special protective status under local, state, or federal statutes. A.A. membership does not grant immunity from local laws and being at an A.A. meeting does not put anyone beyond the jurisdiction of law enforcement officers. As has often been expressed throughout the Fellowship, as individuals, A.A. members are also ‘citizens of the world,’ and as  citizens we are not above the law.

Carrying our message and abiding by our Traditions is, essentially, an internal affair—we can’t expect others to be guided by them in the same way that we are. Yet, A.A. is not a world unto itself.

As those familiar with carrying the message into treatment or correctional facilities can attest, A.A. members doing such service are held to the standards those institutions expect; similarly, A.A. meetings and groups pay rent and must adhere to the conditions established by their landlords.

When it comes to A.A. and matters of the law, it is much the same. We exist within the society that surrounds us. Ultimately, the experience of how these situations are handled can be as varied as our Fellowship, but in most cases good judgment and common sense seem to provide the greatest guide..”