States and localities are employing many prevention strategies to tackle the underage drinking problem.
- Minnesota recently passed new legislation that strengthens advocates’ ability to limit youth access to alcohol.
- California has implemented a program to discourage adults from buying alcohol for minors.
- Kentucky uses the “Cops in Shops” initiative to publicize and strengthen its enforcement efforts.
Health advocates in Minnesota are pleased with the outcome of the 1999 legislative session that ended in May 1999. Two important regulations were passed that community groups and public health and law enforcement agencies can use to fight underage drinking. Community groups, including the Minnesota Join Together Coalition to Reduce Underage Drinking, were involved in advocating for these bills.
First, Minnesota’s Omnibus Crime Bill provided first-time funding to help local authorities conduct compliance checks of establishments selling alcohol to insure they do not sell alcohol to minors. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division (AGED) will distribute $150,000 in grants to local enforcement agencies to help pay for the costs of conducting alcohol compliance checks.
Second, Minnesota legislature passed a bill that makes it a felony to give alcohol to minors who become drunk and are involved in an injury-causing or deadly accident. Previously, only non-commercial adults who sold alcohol to youth in these situations could face felony charges. The bill, known as the “Brockway Bill,” came in response to a request from Tom Brockway of St. Paul, whose 16-year-old son, Kevin, was killed in a 1997 New Year’s Eve crash after leaving a party. At the time, prosecutors could charge the man who provided alcohol to Brockway’s son only with a gross misdemeanor.
Both of these regulations are useful tools for reducing youth access to alcohol. The Training Center recommends routine, comprehensive compliance checks as a key strategy for deterring commercial alcohol sales to minors. Research on compliance checks has found this strategy sharply reduces illegal sales to minors. (See Regulatory Strategies for Preventing Youth Access to Alcohol).
For more information on these Minnesota regulations, contact Jeff Nachbar at Minnesota Join Together Coalition to Reduce Underage Drinking, 612-427-5310, E-mail: [email protected]
In June 1999, the Los Angeles Police Department announced it will be conducting undercover “Shoulder Tap” operations that target adults who furnish alcoholic beverages to people under age 21. The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) is funding the police department’s activities. The initiative involves the use of a minor as a decoy, who, under the direct supervision of a police officer, will ask adults to purchase alcoholic beverages for him or her. “These operations are designed to reduce the number of deaths and injuries due to teen drunk driving. Furnishing alcohol to a minor is a serious offense,” said ABC Director Jay Stroh.
Under this California law that became effective in January 1998, an adult who furnishes alcohol to a minor faces a $1,000 fine and a minimum 24 hours of community service. Furthermore, any adult who furnishes alcohol to a minor who then injures or kills him or herself or anyone else faces a minimum 6 months in the county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both imprisonment and a fine. The Shoulder Tap program helps publicize the seriousness of providing alcohol to a minor.
Recent “Shoulder Tap” operations conducted in California’s Wilshire and West Valley Areas found that between 50 and 60 percent of adults who are approached outside local liquor and convenience stores will accommodate a minor’s request for an alcoholic beverage.
The Training Center recommends implementing strategies to limit noncommercial sources of alcohol to youth, including the “Shoulder Tap” program. The Training Center also suggests informing retailers about the practice of shoulder tapping by youth. Retailers who witness a shoulder-tapping incident should report it to appropriate law enforcement officials. Further responsible beverage service programs should include “shoulder-tapping prevention” as a retailer responsibility.
Source: “Police initiative targets adults giving alcohol to minors,” 6/18/99. Join Together Online
More information about the CA ABC: http://www.abc.ca.gov/
During September 1999, Kentucky’s Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) implemented the “Cops in Shops” program to generate publicity about underage drinking and the enforcement of minimum alcohol purchase age laws. The “Cops in Shops” initiative is an undercover operation, in which law enforcement officers pose as clerks at liquor and convenience stories. In Kentucky, the officers concentrated their efforts in college towns.
The program was publicized on local news media, which educated citizens about the program and warned underage drinkers to stay away from the liquor stores. But even so, in one night, law enforcement officers arrested and cited almost 200 minors and legally drunk adults who were attempting to purchase alcohol.
The Kentucky ABC began the program in 1995 to publicize its enforcement programs and let underage drinkers and merchants know it means business. Over the past 4 years, the program has grown from 14 to 22 counties. In its first year, “Cops in Shops” needed 1,019 citations and arrests. That number has dropped through the years, even as more counties have joined the program.
The Training Center recommends that States utilize the “Cops in Shops” program as only one piece of a comprehensive enforcement plan. The program is often a good method to establish a working relationship with retailers and is useful in targeting retail outlets popular with minors. The Kentucky ABC uses other enforcement strategies as well to complement “Cops in Shops”. It also performs compliance checks with undercover minors who attempt to purchase alcohol.
Source:
- Lasseter, T. ID is not only thing that’s fake; clerk is too. Cops in Shops sting nets underage drinkers. Lexington Herald-Leader, 9/3/99.
Full story: http://www.kentuckyconnect.com/heraldleader/news/090399/statedocs/03copsinshops.htm - Lasseter, T. Cops in shops net violators. 195 cited, arrested in initiative against underage drinking. Lexington Herald-Leader, 9/4/99.
Full story:
http://www.kentuckyconnect.com/heraldleader/news/090499/statedocs/04underage.htm
Is your organization implementing an effective strategy to prevent underage drinking? If so, consider sharing your story with others on the Training Center Web site. Contact [email protected] with details.