Blaine County isn’t the most populous in Idaho. In fact, there’s only an average of eight people per square mile here. But it’s big enough, with about 15,000 households, to have a task force: the Blaine County Underage Drinking Compliance Task Force. Quite a title for a policing agency in this rural area. But, there’s some evidence that such a task force is needed.
Last week’s sweep of 16 local businesses to see which might sell alcohol to minors turned up a whopping 25% failure rate. Or, if you want a positive spin, a 75% compliance rate. One of the offenders, Valtex Market in Ketchum, logged its third failure (adding to one in June and another in March, 2011).
Because the number of businesses checked is so low, a single misstep can alter the percentages, and they have been bouncing around from a low of 42% (2010) to a high of 92% (June, 2011). So perhaps one in four businesses failing isn’t so bad after all.
Typically, police will send a cadet in training who is under the 21 year old minimum age, and, if they successfully purchase alcohol, the police will issue a citation. It’s a misdemeanor offense to sell alcohol to a minor in Idaho.
It’s unlikely that businesses are out to flout the law on purpose – there just isn’t any real motivation to do so. More likely it is a matter of inattention or carelessness. Still, a business can be held legally liable if they sell to a minor and that minor then goes on to either have an accident or otherwise suffer because they have been drinking. Lawyers could “track back” and go after the business itself in a lawsuit. That’s a further incentive to not sell to minors.
Hopefully, a little reminder in the way of a citation will tighten things up a bit.
