Preventing Underage Drinking

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – Cracking down on underage drinking is a full time job for law enforcement.

Their goal is to cut down the number of underage fatalities.

Mississippi’s Alcohol Beverage Control agents do annual training with servers and businesses, showing them how to spot minors trying buy alcohol and the consequences if they serve someone underage.

ABC agents say underage drinking is a big problem, especially in college towns.

It’s difficult to stop, but law enforcement hope random checks help deter those who want to drink before they’re 21.

As bars open, drinks start to pour, and more and more people start coming through the doors, especially on game weekends in Starkville.

Servers and bartenders are always being trained on the state’s liquor and beer laws.

“The businesses come in and we’ll spend an hour, you know, hour and a half, two hours, we’ll go over all the ABC laws, rules, regulations, fake IDs, how to spot fake ID’s, you know, answer any questions they have,” says ABC District 3 Agent in Charge Jason Counts.

To make sure restaurants and bars are following those laws, Alcohol Beverage Control agents do walk-throughs.

“Basically, called bar checks, you know, we walk through the bars, you know, we look for people who appear to be under the age of 21, that’s in possession of liquor and or beer.”

If an underage person is caught, they get a minor in possesion ticket.

The business caught serving them is also ticketed.

If this is not the first offense, the penalty could be worse.

“You can get it revoked, you know, for second offense selling to a minor for liquor and for beer it’s third offense. Third offense within 12 months.”

The Veranda Assistant General Manager Andy Thornton says employees must card anyone that looks under the age of 40.

“It’s just something that you focus on. You spend a lot of time worried about and thinking about it and really wanting to do well and there are big fines too, so that keeps the employees, you know, it’s on their mind because they’ll get fined, as well as the restaurant. So, it doesn’t just hurt the restaurant, it actually hurts the individual taking the ID.”

Thornton says fake ID’s are rare, but they do occasionally see them.

“Especially, in a town of college kids. There’s people that try, but there comes a time where, you know, it doesn’t get by you. You can spot them, you know, and they teach us what to look for and it’s real easy to check the dates and all of that kind of things.”

ABC District 3 Agent in Charge Jason Counts says a lot of underage kids have fake ID’s.

He says that’s because they’re easy to find and buy online.