By Gina Yarbrough
Vista, CA–The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, along with agents from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), and two minor decoys conducted Minor Decoy and Shoulder Tap Operations to crack down on retailers selling alcohol to minors in North County.
According to the Sheriff’s Department, Thursday’s operations were held at various locations in Vista.
During the Shoulder Tap operation, the minor decoys visited retailers at six locations and attempted to purchase alcoholic beverages under the direct supervision of police officers. Two of the locations sold alcohol to a minor decoy.
At one local retail liquor store, a supervised minor asked adults to purchase their alcohol. The minor indicated in some way they were underage and could not purchase the alcohol. Nine adults were contacted and one adult purchased alcohol for the minor. The penalty for furnishing alcohol to a minor is a minimum $1,000 fine and 24 hours of community service.
ABC conducts these compliance checks statewide to reduce the availability of alcohol to minors. Statistics have shown that youths under the age of 21 have a higher rate of drunk driving fatalities than the general adult population, the Sheriff’s Department said in a news release.
The Sheriff’s Department partners with ABC through the Alcohol Policing Partnership grant to help prevent underage drinking and other crimes that may occur at ABC-licensed establishments.
In July 2023, the Sheriff’s Department received an APP grant for $75,000 to reduce alcohol-related crimes and educate ABC-licensed businesses on underage drinking.
The goal of the APP program is to collaborate with local law enforcement agencies to help make communities safer.
Anyone with information on licensed liquor establishments providing alcohol to minors can remain anonymous by calling Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477, or by calling the Sheriff’s Department’s non-emergency line at (858) 565-5200.
