While other recently graduated high school students are enjoying their final summer before going off to college, 19-year-old Cory Allyn Duke of Renton is in jail facing charges of vehicular homicide.

Last December, the car Duke was driving with his girlfriend, 17-year-old Shelby Lee crashed. Lee was killed.

His bail was denied by a judge, and he is currently being held at the King County Regional Justice Center in Kent. A hearing is schedule for Aug. 10.

I’m not going to get into the issue of whether he should be convicted.

For those who do think he should  — especially parents  — I think we need to ask some unpleasant questions. Have you ever driven dangerously? Do you know anybody who does?

My guess is, if everyone were honest, they would say yes to either one of them.

That’s the problem.

At 24, I am still regarded to be young by those around me. Yet, having seen much in high school and college, I feel the need to discuss what we too often ignore out of discomfort.

What happened was neither unordinary or uncommon. It is almost an expectation for teenagers and young adults to rebel against the law or society’s morals (whatever is left of them). It isn’t just excessive speeding. Underage drinking, drug use, casual sex and all sorts of dangerous behavior have been elevated to some kind of higher virtue, and if you don’t engage in the activities, it’s implied you need to grow up.

“Maturity” is now defined as when a kid makes the same blunders adults do.

Parents may not understand this, but a teenager’s absolute worst fear is being labeled as “uptight.” Having a reputation as a “pill” is the surest way to never get a date.

Some of you reading this may be think I’m being melodramatic, but anyone between the ages of 14-25 knows what I’m talking about. Whether they are with a crowd or just one friend, kids are often forced to choose between a wise or poor life decision. It is almost inevitable that the poor choice is the popular, fun one. What’s worse is that these harmless activities can turn into deadly tragedies in an instant. All it takes is one instant to go from fun to despair.

Imagine being in a car with a bunch of friends. The mood is relaxed. The friend behind the wheel is driving recklessly in a joking manner to amuse everyone. You may feel uneasy inside, but you’re afraid you’ll appear like you’re “mommy-ing” them if you say anything.

Trust me. I’ve politely asked people to slow down or drive more safely. Rarely did they listen. Mostly, they called me “paranoid.”

It only gets worse when kids go to college. No matter which university it is, making huge lapses in moral judgment could almost qualify as a requisite course for graduation.

During my first year, I was forced to explain to people repeatedly why I wasn’t a party animal. After seeing people get alcohol poisoning, black out and get slapped with a minor in possession charge, I had to wonder what was so appealing about drinking cheap swill beer and getting fat.

One guy I talked to compared college to a weekend trip to Las Vegas.

“Dude, this is the time in your life when you can make all the mistakes you want and no one will ever know about it,” he said.

That year, two 20-year-old male students at my university died in the same weekend. Both incidents were caused by excessive alcohol consumption.

And believe me, people knew about it.

All bad choices have consequences. Some of them are temporary and small. Others are harsh and stay with you for the rest of your life.

What this guy said to me represents how too many of us think. It’s reflected in the movies we watch, the books we read and the music we listen to.

The problem is fiction and reality do not always blend well. What constitutes as humor in films such as “Superbad,” where three awkward high school boys try to get underage girls drunk in order to sleep with them, is unrealistic, illegal and disturbing in real life.

Ultimately, young adults are responsible for their actions, but parents play a role by raising them. They can’t afford to be naive and presume their kids are little angels. They have to stress wisdom at a young age, so that when their child turns 18, they will act like a responsible adult, not a Will Farrell-like adolescent. Parents must also be open about their own mistakes and not hold double-standards.

It is absolutely essentially kids learn that an apology, no matter how sincere it is, won’t get them off of a punishment.

I’m going to be frank with all of you recent high school graduates. If you have a clean slate, for the love of God, don’t dirty it when you go to college for the sake of the “experience.” It is not worth it.

I’m not saying you should be a kill-joy. Just use some common sense when you have fun.

This isn’t a propaganda message delivered on behalf of some parental watchdog group run by people who live in a 1950’s utopian dreamworld. I graduated from college less than two years ago. I know how tough it can be to stay out of trouble, especially when it seems to be the norm.

I’m warning you about all of this because I myself was warned by people who made these mistakes decades ago and suffer from them to this day. I was spared because I listened to their warnings. I hope you’re spared, too.

It won’t be easy. The power to do as you please is intoxicating. But, if you don’t wield it properly, it steals a piece of you that you can’t get back.

You’ve got your whole life ahead of you. A night of fun is not worth a lifetime of regret, or even death. It’s playing Russian roulette with your future.

If you still don’t believe me, ask Cory Duke. My guess is, he’d tell you the same thing.