Law enforcement agencies across California, and the rest of America, are urging those who are participating in St. Patrick’s Day celebrations to do so carefully and with regard to others.
Those who choose to be unruly and break laws will face consequences, according to the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), whose main focus with their latest campaign is cracking down on underage alcohol sales and those who purchase alcohol for minors, officials stated in a press release.
In an effort to combat this trend, more than 60 law enforcement agencies across the Golden State have come together to conduct “Shoulder Tap” operations, which focuses on those purchasing drinks for minors.
During a “Shoulder Tap” operation, a minor being supervised by law enforcement stands outside stores that sell alcohol and ask customers to make a purchase for them, clarifying that they can’t buy anything because they are underage.
Should a person over the age of 21 agree to the minor’s request, they could be arrested and cited for furnishing alcohol to a minor. On March 15 alone, 167 citations were issued, ABC said.
“The operation resulted in citations for 162 individuals who allegedly furnished alcoholic beverages to minors, [and] at least five others were cited for driving under the influence or other infractions.”
The penalty for furnishing alcohol to a minor is a $1,000 fine and 24 hours of community service.
“ACS’s efforts this weekend alongside more than 60 California law enforcement agencies to bring awareness to underage drinking issues was an overwhelming success,” ABC Director Joseph McCullough said. “These types of collaborative efforts increase public safety for communities in our state and also boost protections for California’s young people.”
Keeping alcohol out of the hands of underage drinkers is key to curbing the rate of car crashes involving teens, officials say; according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, vehicle collisions are the leading cause of death for teens.
Of those crashes, more than a quarter of them involved drivers between 15 and 20 years old who had a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .01 or higher. California has a zero-tolerance policy for underage drivers’ BAC, meaning that anything above a zero is illegal.
The legal limit for adults in California is 0.08%.
