A 53-year-old Fulton man is facing four misdemeanor charges after police say he separately gave alcohol to one 13-year-old and nicotine vapes to a different 13-year-old, both of whom had been visiting his residence. John Williams was arrested Thursday following an investigation that began in July, when officers first received a report that he had purchased alcohol for a young teen at his home.
According to the Oswego County Today, the Fulton Police Department opened its investigation in July 2026 after the initial alcohol complaint. While digging into that case, officers uncovered a second, separate incident in which Williams allegedly purchased nicotine vapes for a different 13-year-old who had also been at his residence. The two incidents involved young teens visiting the same Fulton home, per the same outlet's report.
Williams now faces two counts of endangering the welfare of a child and two counts of unlawfully dealing with a child in the second degree. He was held pending arraignment following his arrest.
What the Charges Carry Under New York Law
Endangering the welfare of a child under New York Penal Law § 260.10 is a Class A misdemeanor, carrying up to 364 days in jail, three years of probation, and fines up to $1,000. The statute applies to conduct knowingly likely to be injurious to a minor's physical, mental, or moral welfare.
The secondary charge, unlawfully dealing with a child in the second degree under New York Penal Law § 260.21, is a Class B misdemeanor. That law specifically criminalizes selling or providing tobacco or other restricted adult goods to anyone under 21.
Providing alcohol to a minor carries its own separate exposure. Under New York Alcoholic Beverage Control Law § 65, delivering alcoholic beverages to anyone under 21 is illegal and can open an adult up to both criminal prosecution and civil social host liability, according to a legal explainer cited by Keuka College. Separately, the state's Adolescent Tobacco Use Prevention Act bans the sale or distribution of all tobacco products, e-cigarettes, and nicotine vapor devices to anyone under 21, as outlined by the New York State Department of Health.
Investigator Urges Anyone With Information to Come Forward
The Fulton Police Department is encouraging anyone with information about the investigation to contact Investigator Joli Marino at 315-598-4342. Marino, who is serving as the point of contact on the case, is a U.S. Air Force veteran and former president of the Fulton Police Benevolent Association, according to Oswego County Today.
The Fulton Police Department operates out of the Fulton Municipal Building on South First Street, per the City of Fulton. Williams faces four misdemeanor charges.
A Local and Statewide Pattern Around Youth Substance Access
Local survey data gives some sense of how common underage drinking already is in the area. Eighteen percent of high school students in Oswego County reported consuming alcohol within the previous 30 days, while 62 percent viewed underage drinking as a moderate to great risk, according to the Oswego County Prevention Coalition.
On the vaping side, statewide health reporting found 13.1 percent of New York high school students reported current vape use in 2023, according to PPAC Central, down from 18.7 percent in 2022. Nationally, e-cigarette use among middle and high school students dropped to roughly 6 percent in 2024 from 7.7 percent the year before, per National Youth Tobacco Survey data cited by Newsday.
Families affected by youth nicotine use have access to Drop the Vape, a free text-based cessation program for teens ages 13 to 17 run jointly by the New York State Department of Health and the New York State Education Department. The program offers evidence-based quitting support developed alongside the Truth Initiative, the same source notes.
This is at least the second Fulton case this month involving an adult facing child endangerment-related charges; a Fulton man was caught after a manhunt on separate charges earlier in October.
