CARLSBAD–Officers from the Carlsbad Police Department and investigators from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) joined forces on April 27 and cited one clerk for selling alcohol to a minor.
The arrest followed a decoy operation where minors, under the direct supervision of Carlsbad Police Officers and ABC Investigators, attempted to purchase alcohol from 24 retail licensees in the City of Carlsbad.
The clerk who sold alcohol to the minor faces a minimum fine of $250, and/or 24 to 32 hours of community service for a first violation. In addition, ABC will take administrative action against the alcoholic beverage licenses of the businesses that sold alcohol to a minor decoy. That may include a fine, a suspension of the license, or the permanent revocation of the license.
The Carlsbad Police Department and ABC conducted the minor decoy operation to reduce the availability of alcohol to minors. Statistics have shown that young people under the age of 21 have a higher rate of drunken driving fatalities than the general adult population.
Minor decoy operations have been conducted by local law enforcement throughout the state since the 1980’s. In 1994, the California Supreme Court ruled unanimously that use of underage decoys is a valid tool of law enforcement to ensure that licensees are complying with the law. Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.
