“Going out.” “Clubbing.” “Having a good time.” These phrasesdescribe what many college students do on a routine weekend. And inmany cases, having a good time also can be closely linked toalcohol.
This situation becomes problematic when bars admit and sellalcohol to college-aged students, many who are under 21, the legaldrinking age.
Officials from the Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Controlinvestigated Friar Tucks Lounge in New Orleans, a popular collegestudent hangout, last week and found 61 minors being servedalcohol, according to an Associated Press article.
Officials issued 69 misdemeanor summonses for underage drinking,public intoxication and bartenders serving underage customers,according to the article.
Jason Blitch, Friar Tucks owner, told the AP there is a problemwith the bar age limit being 18 and allowing people who are 18 toenter bars but forbidding them to drink if they are under 21.
“If you don’t want a child playing with matches, don’t bring himto a match factory,” Blitch told the AP.
Jessica Audler, an interior design sophomore, said most peoplewho go to bars are under 21.
“If people are going to let you in the bar, people should becareful who they serve,” Audler said. “It is the bar’sresponsibility, not ours.”
Authorities are targeting this problem, making vendors moreresponsible for their sales and cracking down on people associatedwith underage alcohol consumption.
In 1996, the Louisiana Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control didan independent, baseline study and found that 56 percent of allretail establishments in the state sold alcohol to underage buyers,said Louis Thompson, a staff officer for the ATC.
The ATC began working with vendors who were licensed to sellalcohol at the retail establishments to get to the core of theproblem, Thompson said.
Legislators passed the Responsible Vendor Program in 1997, whichrequires each server and seller of alcohol to go through theprogram, attend three hours of instructional courses and pass atest to receive a license every two years. The ATC mandated theprogram in 1998.
To combat businesses which sell to underage students, the ATCusually does a complete search of the establishment in question.Thompson said the ATC employs underage operatives, underage peoplewho attempt to buy alcohol from bartenders, witnessed by ATCagents. The scenario usually is videotaped.
Thompson said when the ATC investigated Friar Tucks Lounge, itwas a compliance or enforcement operation where agents checked allinventory, including the total number of drinks sold and number ofdrinks sold to one person within a specific period of time.
“Common sense can tell you a person is drunk by the number ofdrinks and time period in which they bought them,” Thompsonsaid.
The ATC also began Project Fighting Off Campus Underage Sales,or FOCUS, a program that officials first implemented in 2001.Thompson said the ATC designated 10 university areas in the state– Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Hammond, Houma/Thibodaux, Ruston, LakeCharles, Lafayette, Shreveport/Bossier City, Monroe andNatchitoches — that, through data analysis, showed higher levelsof underage sales than others.
Thompson said there is not one specific area that has higherlevels of underage drinking violations than others. But the ATCtargets bars in every area that have high levels of underagedrinking.
Project FOCUS is funded by the United States Department ofJustice and a grant from the Office of Juvenile Justice andDelinquency Prevention.
Thompson called Project FOCUS a “portion of the overall biggerpicture” to control underage alcohol activity. The program focuseson education of proper alcohol usage, enforcement when persons arefound in violation of the laws and public awareness of the lawsregarding alcohol.
Thompson said Project FOCUS works with many community groups foreducation purposes at schools, including the Council on Alcohol andDrug Abuse.
Thompson said there is an ATC team of officials who enforcealcohol regulations at public events such as football games. Hesaid the number of officials present at each event varies accordingto size of the event and other variables.
Thompson said as many as 1,000 persons were cited for underagealcohol consumption during the Mardi Gras holiday, though a largepercentage of those cited were from out-of-state.
Thompson said it is rare to arrest a person for underagedrinking, which is a misdemeanor that usually results in afine.
“It is not always productive to put someone in jail for a firstoffense or misdemeanor,” Thompson said.
Thompson said many judges advocate a pretrial education programfor the underage person, which is a first offense training programfor alcohol abuse.
Thompson said most district attorneys welcome the educationalprogram, and the program offers community service and the chargemay be dismissed if the person completes the program and does whatis needed.
“We are trying to put a stop to the problem, not createproblems,” Thompson said.
Thompson said the legal consequences for people who manufacturefalse identification identifying themselves as over 21 results in afelony charge. People found in possession of a false license havetheir real licenses suspended and are charged with amisdemeanor.
Persons over 21 who buy for underage persons can receive asteeper penalty of a misdemeanor and up to a $500 fine, Thompsonsaid.
The ATC followed up the 1996 study with a study in 2001 and2002. The study found the rate had fallen below 10 percent foralcohol sales to minors.
Thompson credits the education, enforcement and public serviceaspects of Project FOCUS for the sharp decrease in underagesales.
Thompson said the three components of Project FOCUS only areeffective together.
“One of the three cannot work by itself,” Thompson said.