Liquor Control Board working to keep kids from buying booze
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SEATTLE -- At a drug store in Renton, a 19-year old goes on a shopping trip. His target isn't toothpaste, however; it's a tall bottle of alcohol.
"We tell the minor to go in, to act their own age, dress their own age. We want them to look like a minor," said Officer Josh Bolender, with the enforcement division of the state Liquor Control Board. "We don't try to trick the businesses or fool them into selling."
Bolender is there - a few steps behind the minor - as the pair travels from grocery store chains to convenience shops and even liquor outlets. They hit nearly 30 different locations Thursday evening, with the 19-year old trying to buy everything from Four Loko to hard alcohol.
The group begins at a gas station convenience store in Renton. The teenager picks up a bottle from the shelf. The clerk behind the counter runs his ID and realizes it doesn't pass muster. The teen walks away empty-handed.
Bolender said the Liquor Control Board runs checks like these about once a month in King County.
"By doing these compliance checks, it helps to keep minor access to a minimum," he said. "It's a great deterrent."
Minors' access to alcohol was a hot-button issue last November, with Initiative 1183 on the ballot. The measure privatized liquor sales in Washington State, but opponents feared the change would allow minors greater access to alcohol.
Of the more than two dozen stores tested by the LCB on Thursday, no employees sold alcohol to the 19-year old. A clerk at a drug store in Des Moines initially cleared the the minor for a sale, but a second clerk realized his ID wouldn't clear, and took the alcohol from the teenager.
"Couldn't ask for better results," Bolender said. "(The clerk) maybe came close to selling but as long as the minor doesn't walk out of the store with the alcohol. There were a couple close calls today but no sales."
"(It was) an exceptional day," Bolender added. "In fact, an unprecedented day."
"We tell the minor to go in, to act their own age, dress their own age. We want them to look like a minor," said Officer Josh Bolender, with the enforcement division of the state Liquor Control Board. "We don't try to trick the businesses or fool them into selling."
Bolender is there - a few steps behind the minor - as the pair travels from grocery store chains to convenience shops and even liquor outlets. They hit nearly 30 different locations Thursday evening, with the 19-year old trying to buy everything from Four Loko to hard alcohol.
The group begins at a gas station convenience store in Renton. The teenager picks up a bottle from the shelf. The clerk behind the counter runs his ID and realizes it doesn't pass muster. The teen walks away empty-handed.
Bolender said the Liquor Control Board runs checks like these about once a month in King County.
"By doing these compliance checks, it helps to keep minor access to a minimum," he said. "It's a great deterrent."
Minors' access to alcohol was a hot-button issue last November, with Initiative 1183 on the ballot. The measure privatized liquor sales in Washington State, but opponents feared the change would allow minors greater access to alcohol.
Of the more than two dozen stores tested by the LCB on Thursday, no employees sold alcohol to the 19-year old. A clerk at a drug store in Des Moines initially cleared the the minor for a sale, but a second clerk realized his ID wouldn't clear, and took the alcohol from the teenager.
"Couldn't ask for better results," Bolender said. "(The clerk) maybe came close to selling but as long as the minor doesn't walk out of the store with the alcohol. There were a couple close calls today but no sales."
"(It was) an exceptional day," Bolender added. "In fact, an unprecedented day."
The availability is right there in the candy isle for them to steal booze. Walmart had it on a special shelf in the entryway as if to say LOOK AT WHAT WE SELL NOW! This stupid-ness is going to end up walking right out the door in teens pockets. More wrecks, DUI's, deaths. We really moved toward as a society changing the sales and auctioning off the states liquor stores.  If any of my family is harmed due to some booze steeling teen crashing his car into us, I'm going to own this state by suing the living daylights out of the liquor board.
Now if the stores could just keep them from stealing it.
"Liquor Control Board working to keep kids from buying booze"...and because of the additional taxes, it's working on adults, too.
Get a clue...my husband had older brothers who purchased it for him...some kids even get it by stealing it from the parents....it is good the agency does these checks...but whether or not the state is in the liquor business...kids will choose to drink...and the ones who are 18....the young men and women we send to war...should be able to have one legally in the country they defend.
Thank Costco and the leadershiop at Costco for this. Â They are 100 percent responsible, and the blood of these teenagers and those they take with them will be on their hands.Â
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Boycott Costco for writing this initiative, for buying this initiative with paid signature gatherers, and for making the societal problem of alcholism, already bad, even worse.
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Costco is no longer our friendly neighborhood success story. Â It's no different than any other soul-less corporation. Â Profit at any cost. Â
Costco has "the blood of these teenagers..." on their hands? Give me a break! How about personal responsibility, or if they're under 18, parental responsibility?Â
@Shelly May not be all Costco's fault but they bought the election so the bulk of it would be on them. As for parental responsibility - good luck with that. Do you have kids? I don't but when I was younger I did a lot of crazy and irresponsible things. The only way my parents could've stopped me was to have locked me up and never allowed me to leave the house. Kids do dumb things and don't think about consequences, even when it is spelled out by their parents. It's called peer pressure. So not having temptation displayed on shelves at every grocery store would help curb some of these decisions kids are faced with.
@Shelly I agree that most troubled and messed up are a product of bad or absent parenting. I don't agree that because a kid drinks underage or even gets pressured into shoplifting a bottle of booze, is a bad kid. A lot of kids go to parties - cheerleaders, jocks, kids with wonderful parents and on and on. Don't be so judgemental. And while I am sure you are a great parent, don't be in denial. In my experience, the parents who are in denial about things - "my kids aren't having sex so they don't need condoms, etc." are the ones whose daughters end up pregnant or sons are paying child suppert at 17 years old.
 @Anarchy  @Shelly Kids are a product of their environment. Of course there are exceptions, but I have never met an problem child who didn't have f'd up parents.
Beer and wine are alcohol too and they have both been in the grocery stores for a long time. As with any kind of merchandise there is going to be those who steal. Most drugs are kept in the pharmacy behind lock and key, but that doesn't keep kids from getting drugs. Just because alcohol was kept in a state liquor store wasn't a guarantee that kids won't get it if they want it bad enough. The majority of people don't shoplift and so those who do shouldn't be the cause of still more controls on the general population.
 @Jatok It's not that there wasn't a problem before.  It's that the problem is now worse so Costco could make a few more ducats that, frankly, then didn't need.  Bloodsuckers. Â
the store where we shop has the liquor about 20 from the door someone could shoplift it and walk out the door with out the staff seeing them. i think, the liquor should be in the isles in front of the checkout booths making it harder to shoplift it and walk out the door.Â
@32jim2 I think it should be at a special counter. Most grocery stores have a cigarette counter, why can't the liquor be back there?
The liquor Board still care my God  ????
This isn't a new thing. When I was in college I worked at a grocery store and the LCB did compliance checks all the time. My sister used to be one of these teens working for the LCB doing these checks.
This doesn't matter to those just grabbing the booze and running out the door. Happening all over. It's sitting on shelves just inviting theft.
@Klondiko I agree.Cannot be that hard for them to steal. Especially if they have done it before. Before, they couldn't even enter the liquor stores, now it is pretty much everywhere. I have friends who work for Safeway and QFC and both said that liquor being stolen is a big problem.
 @Anarchy Thats Interesting because when I have gone into Safeway and Albertsons, they both have anti theft devices on all of their liquor. Seems to me they are doing their job at preventing theft.
The anti-theft devices can also be in the UPC code and the technology they use now isn't quite as obvious as what it was in the past or as unsofisticated Just because you can't see scanners doesn't mean they are not there. Guess the question is do you feel lucky?
 @Howbouthat And to be clear: I support the new lawâI just think the stores need to focus more on theft than profit for a while as the teens get this new "freedom" out of their system.
 @Howbouthat I've heard that the anti-theft devices are for show and don't actually set off any alarms. In fact, I can't remember seeing the alarm "gates" at the exits of any QFC or Safeway 'round here.Â
@Howbouthat I have seen some anti-theft on the top shelf stuff. Kids aren't going to care if it's the cheap stuff. Maybe they have made some changes.
@Klondiko obviously we can't stop criminals from obtaining liquor by stealing it, and I can't agree that merchandise in a store is inviting theft. It takes a criminal who doesn't care about their future to buck the system and steal it off the shelves. I'm glad voters didn't allow the criminal demographic to steer their vote on privatized liquor.
Sure glad that every single store passed! I'm 23 but people often mistake me for 16, so I get carded almost everywhere I go. It definitely does not bother me; instead I appreciate it because it means that they are more likely to card a teenager who is trying to pass for an adult.
One of the big scare tactics the union put out was that minors was going to be picking up liquor left and right, that there would be an epidemic.....like most scare tactic propaganda, it didn't come to pass.......now if we could tell the state to go F itself and pass an initiative getting rid of the ridiculous tax rates, we might actually get a decent deal out of privatization......
Actually this is a good article - the private stores are exceeding expectations in not selling to minors.
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FYI Unions - the sky did not fall, anarchy did not break out, 200 kids per week are not getting killed due to illegal alcohol sales....
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However it still indicates that dirt bags are still dirt bags and theft from employees, kids and adults is still a problem...human nature has apparently not changed by privatizing liquor sales....LOLÂ
 @Truth Percolates If even one kid is killed it's a problem. At least for me it is.  It's nice you quantified it as a problem only when we get up to 200 kids per week. Â
Beware of minors in trenchcoats.
Remember the good ole days when all the stores took our fake ID's? I won't say that was a good thing, clearly it wasn't, but man was it a lot of fun back then.
I work for a large market chain, our computers have a screen that pops up and a loud (annoying) beep that stops the sale until you input a date. You will notice this if you are older when the clerk inputs six numbers after he or she scans the cigs or booze. Then you can proceed. Our policy is that if you look younger than 30 we card. Our asset protection people also try to run under age people thru our lines. I have the Dick Clark thing and look 15 to 20 years younger than I am. If a 20 something kid gives me a hassle I will smile at him and tell him that it is very difficult to tell a persons age and say something like this "You can't hurt my feelings, guess how old I am." I am 72 and they usually come in at 50's or 60's. That usually quiets them down.
They would be better off focusing on mom and dad's liquor cabinet or the beer in their fridge!
 @whoareyou I believe it's actually legal to provide alcohol to your own under-age kids while inside the privacy of your own home.. Â
@Landshark @whoareyou I'm pretty sure that is not correct. Point us to the RCW that says this is allowed.
 @doubleoevan  @Landshark  @whoareyou RCW 66.44.270    Furnishing liquor to minors â Possession, use â Penalties â Exhibition of effects â Exceptions.(3) Subsections (1) and (2)(a) of this section do not apply to liquor given or permitted to be given to a person under the age of twenty-one years by a parent or guardian and consumed in the presence of the parent or guardian. This subsection shall not authorize consumption or possession of liquor by a person under the age of twenty-one years on any premises licensed under chapter 66.24 RCW.
The title of the article should read "Liquor Control Board works to protect unions."Â
"Couldn't ask for better results," Bolender said. "(The clerk) maybe came close to selling but as long as the minor doesn't walk out of the store with the alcohol. There were a couple close calls today but no sales."
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"(It was) an exceptional day," Bolender added. "In fact, an unprecedented day."
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so, according to the state liquor control board, as represented by Mr. Bolender, this was "an unprecedented day," meaning this result of 100% compliance has never happened before. therefore, when the STATE sold liquor, they would have at least one non-compliance per month, but now with widespread liquor distribution, they have now had their first month of 100% compliance.
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to put it another way, sellers are already proven more vigilant under the new liquor distribution law than when the state held a monopoly on it. INTERESTING.
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the missing data is whether any state operated liquor stores ever failed under the previous law. when the state monitors the state, the employee is fired but the offending store keeps on selling liquor. under the current law, however, store owners can lose their license and/or face shutdown if they sell to a minor. this creates incentive for them to be more vigilant than any previously state-run liquor store would have ever been.
I had my Stupidar go off  when some urban teens got on the bus by a Fred Meyer on my route. I sensed they were up to something but they got off  a few stops later. At the end of the line, I found a Fred Meyer security  booze cap that explained the "thud" I heard coming from the little angels.Â
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Whatever happened to the Good Ol' Days when Big Brother or Sis would buy ya that pint of 151?
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Wow! Underage employees testing the system. Good job. Glad they are taking this seriously.
 @Zoso They were using this system effectively for over ten years. As stated in the story, they wanted someone who looks, dresses and has a factual ID.
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I instantly thought its a teen who may have been arrested and this was his form of punishment/community service. What better way to ensure they dont try to steal again than to send them to 30 stores and all essentially prove to them how fruitless it can be.
They don't need to do anything. Youth unemployment is at record highs and the distributors cranked up prices so high they can barely afford to buy an empty fifth to sniff the cap.
Great proof reading Lindsay Cohen.Â
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"A clerk at a drug store in Des Moines initially cleared the the minor for a sale, but a second clerk realized his ID wouldn't clear, and took the alcohol the teenager."
"Liquor Control Board working to keep kids from buying booze" Yeah, now its at Safeway where they can steal it instead of buy it.
 @T_BONE_WALKER And they couldn't steal alcohol before?? My husband worked at a grocery store in his teenage years. People were stealing it back then...
 @T_BONE_WALKER you're right, cause you can't steal from the liquor store.  good grief.
 @T_BONE_WALKER Yeah, good point. It's not like grocery stores don't have security devices to catch shoplifters these days. Oh, wait...
@Zoso They do but they also have policies in place that don't allow employees to chase and bring the thief back.
 @T_BONE_WALKER Reminds me of what I heard from a WinCo employee. They had someone shoplift there, and basically if they get away, the cashier automatically gets at least one unpaid day of vacation. Guess they always have to put the blame somewhere, and in this case, it's the cashier.
 @T_BONE_WALKER  @Zoso Corporate Retail mostly has the same policy, You have to see them conceal, you cant lose sight of them for more that 3 seconds and you have to stop them outside the store. Most stores have gone to a policy that only trained personnel can stop shoplifters. I.E. management. No chasing.
 @Zoso nobody out to steal a bottle in their drawers, under their armpits, in their backpacks or in a fully loaded shopping cart (a true statement) cares if there's a security cap or band that makes the door alarm go off on their booze. You can't stop them if they keep walking, and most people do anyway.
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Alarms go off because of the new clothing tags sewn into the seams of clothes, certain key fobs, electronic odds and ends, and for no reason at all even when nobody is in the doorway. Unless you can find a security "device" that teleports the product back to the register, it's just a waste of time.
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You can't just go up to a kid in baggy pants (unless you "see" him do it) and say, "hey there. Your crotch looks like a bottle." or maybe a box of Patron. That's actionable.
@Zoso @T_BONE_WALKER Grocery stores can't even stop people from stealing their shopping carts.
 @nodozr  @Zoso  @T_BONE_WALKER and shopping carts are expensive. Next time you are in a hardware store check out the price of a heavy duty wheel like they use on a shopping cart.
 @T_BONE_WALKER Whats the Difference? if a Minor steals it or an Adult? It's still Illegal and no Employee gets in trouble, same results regardless who steals it.
@waltercross I guess the only difference that comes to mind right now is the portion of the brain that alcohol impacts is also a portion of brain that isn't fully developed in a teen and as a result, the teen can become addicted much easier and sooner then an adult. I could come up with more reasons except that portion of my brain wont work just now.
 @T_BONE_WALKER Unfortunately, I'm hearing the same thing. The big stores need to move the liquor to a place where it can be monitored.
@strangel00p Yeah they need to take a look at it before these kids start dying even quicker.
 @T_BONE_WALKER You must be real fun at parties; are you always this negative or is this just a summer fling.
@Howard Beale Oh Hi Howie, its always so nice to hear from you. Say how about those unemployment numbers huh? http://www.komonews.com/news/business/US-unemployment-aid-applications-rise-to-365000-164763006.html or, those pesky US factory order numbers http://www.komonews.com/news/business/US-factory-orders-fell-05-percent-in-June-164762576.html ? How are those fitting with your efforts to siglehandedly usher in a economic recovery? And what about the drought? are you predicting lower commodity prices as well? Maybe you could use those numbers while convincing your propective home buyers that "Its a new day in U.S. home pricing" and theres never been a better time to invest? Oh and those assessed tax values? But, pay no attention as value is never taken from assessed value because Howie says so. Its always a pleasure Howie but I must be moving on now, Party on dude!
 @T_BONE_WALKER  @HowardÂ
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Lets see - retail sales up:
http://www.komonews.com/news/business/Clearances-heat-lured-shoppers-to-spend-in-July-164761096.html
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Economy added 163K jobs last month
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/us-added-163000-jobs-in-july-unemployment-rate-ticks-up-to-83-percent/2012/08/03/gJQAaZCFUX_story.html
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...âIt would appear that the slow patch weâve had since April is over,â Gus Faucher, senior macro economist at PNC Financial Services Group, said before the release of the numbers....
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You're just upset because I provided you multiple third-party resources, including those who were hammering away about "shadow inventory" just 18 months ago who are now all saying we're over that hump. Just 1.6 million homes in "shadow inventory" nationally now, and of those half aren't even in foreclosure yet.
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But hey, I'm sure you and the Mitt Romney campaign can find something to latch on to to show just how miserable it all is.
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Gloom, doom...oh and before you go there T BONE, I didn't vote for Obama and never will - didn't vote for that McCain dude either and sure won't be voting for Mittens.
 @T_BONE_WALKER  @Howard What a strange person you are.
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Prospective home buyers? You're a real comedian, I'm as far away from real estate as you can get, and was a massive real estate bear from 2007 to the winter of 2011. Funny thing about the internet, electrons are archived and searchable.
 @Howard Beale T-Bone brings up a good point: The night before the grocery stores were allowed to shelf the product officially, a Safeway store in the south sound had their product under the security cameras since they couldnt lock it up.
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When the management found product missing, they pulled up the video and found several of their own employees were grabbing a bottle for themselves. Its not worth a job for a $20-$30 bottle of booze.
 @DarkRenegade Wait, Employees steal??? FROM THEIR EMPLOYERS?!?!
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IN RETAIL?!?!?!?!
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Say it isn't so!
I don't know how the private stores are staying in business. They were stealing the liquor stores blind when the state ran them