They Should Have "Just Said No"

Two Clinton establishments allegedly failed a state liquor compliance check conducted this month and will face a future administrative hearing.

Town and Country Market at 153 Glenwood Road and the new Ortega's Mexican Restaurant at 192 East Main Street allegedly sold alcohol to an underage person working under the guidance of the Department of Consumer Protection.

On August 11 in the early evening hours, agents from the Department's Liquor Control Division and officers from the Clinton Police Department were in town conducting a series of compliance checks of 18 establishments that sell liquor including package stores, grocery stores, bars and restaurants.

A volunteer minor who had been trained by the Governor's Prevention Partnership assisted with the checks.

Of the 18 Clinton businesses tested for compliance, it is alleged that two businesses failed the check by selling alcohol to minors. The businesses are Town & Country Market and Ortega's.

“Compliance checks help us to identify businesses that are selling to minors, and we routinely conduct random checks in towns across the state,” Consumer Protection Commissioner William M. Rubenstein said in a statement. “Our objective is to find businesses that knowingly or unknowingly sell alcohol to minors and bring them into compliance with state law.”

However, he added, compliance checks are not intended to hurt local businesses.

“We don’t try to trick or entice establishments to sell alcoholic beverages to youth,” Rubenstein said. “If asked for proof of age before making a liquor purchase, the volunteer youth will hand over his or her actual photo I.D.”

How it typically works is that trained underage volunteers, usually 17 years old and often female, enter a local bar or liquor store, sometimes in pairs. They are not allowed to alter their appearance by makeup or clothing that would make them appear older.  If they are asked to show an I.D., they comply by showing the clerk or bartender their own identification which shows they are under the age of 21, the legal age to purchase alcohol in the state.  If the license is checked and they are denied alcohol, they leave the establishment. If they are served, the Liquor Commission and police come in.

The businesses that allegedly sold to minors will be brought before the Liquor Control Commission for an administrative hearing, at which time they will have an opportunity to address the charges.

Compliance checks are not new for Clinton businesses that sell liquor.

Kristin Brooks, Drug-Free Communities grant coordinator on the First Selectman’s Task Force on Substance Abuse noted that the last check which took place in the Fall of 2009 resulted in a 100% compliance rate for the town.

Brooks said that before and after these checks, classes are offered to all of the business owners in order to brush up on the laws and ID checking. 

"Many managers, clerks and bartenders attended the classes," said Brooks.

The goal of the training is to talk to the merchants about the proper way to check identification including the many ways to spot a fake i.d., to talk about the merchants’ role in the sale of alcohol including their rights and the rights of the consumer, and to offer general information regarding the prevention of the sale of alcohol to minors.

First Selectman Willie Fritz, chair of the Task Force, said “The Task Force is thrilled to continually have so many partners in our mission to keep Clinton a healthy, alcohol-free environment for young people. We applaud the establishments that passed the compliance check. They all demonstrated exactly what it means to Be the Wall between youth and alcohol. Those that weren’t successful have an opportunity through training of staff and education to be the cement that binds our wall, as well as our community.”