Sting targets stores that sell to minors, clerks cited for underage alcohol sales

COOPER CITY -- The 18-year-old walked into the liquor store on Friday at noon and picked up a 12-pack of Bud Light.

When the clerk at Fine Spirits Wine & Liquor in Cooper City asked for identification, he handed over his license.

Although the boy was underage, the clerk sold him alcohol -- and was immediately charged with a second-degree misdemeanor by law enforcement officers.

"I thought with my license it would have been easy for her to tell I was under 21," said the boy identified only as Michael, one of four teens working with the Broward Sheriff's Office and the state Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco Bureau of Law Enforcement.

The sting was part of a two-day operation in Cooper City and Oakland Park. The two cities were chosen at random, police said.

In Cooper City, six of the 17 targeted stores sold alcohol or tobacco to minors, police said. In Oakland Park, five of 18 did.

Law enforcement agents say they conduct these stings about once a week in different cities. They said compliance usually ranges from 60 to 90 percent.

"The level of noncompliance we found today is disturbing," said Patrick Roberts, regional manager with the Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco, Bureau of Law Enforcement.

Around the holidays, teens have more free time, and that means "there are more instances of kids drinking and driving," said Sgt. Robert Beckman.

"Kids should not be drinking."

But statistics show minors are finding ways to obtain liquor, and in some cases are drinking heavily.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, people between the ages of 12 and 20 drink 20 percent of the alcohol consumed in the United States. In 2004, there were 142,000 emergency-room visits by youths in that age group for alcohol-related injuries.

Jim Hall, director of the Center for the Study and Prevention of Substance Abuse at Nova Southeastern University, has said that a person who starts drinking at 15 is five times more likely to have a lifelong problem with alcohol and abuse than those who start at an older age.

Some teens say it is not difficult to obtain alcohol locally.

"Sometimes a roommate or an older friend will go buy it," said Patrick Kelson, 20, who lives in Cooper City.

Others say they go to places that don't check for identification.

Julio McMahon, 21, of Cooper City, said he was surprised to hear that some minors were able to make purchases in his neighborhood.

"When I go in, they usually have a scanner that immediately asks for my ID," McMahon said.

The teens who helped with Friday's sting said they viewed it as a community service.

"It's not a good thing," that kids can purchase alcohol so easily, Michael said.

Clerks and owners who made the illegal sales on Friday were given notices to appear in court. In one case, a clerk who was cited quit her job on the spot.

"If you keep the pressure on, if you keep letting them know law enforcement is watching, you get compliance," Roberts said.