Daly City Police arrested six individuals for furnishing alcoholic beverages to minors on Friday during a "Shoulder Tap" decoy operation designed to enforce the law and to help reduce youth access to alcohol.
The "Shoulder Tap" decoy operation involves a minor(s) who works under the direct supervision of a peace officer. The minor(s) will stand outside a liquor or convenience store and ask patrons to buy him/her alcohol. The minor indicates in some way he or she is underage and cannot purchase the alcohol.
If the adults agree to purchase alcohol for the minor, officers then arrest and cite them for furnishing alcohol to the minor. The penalty for furnishing alcohol to a minor is a minimum $1,000 fine and 24 hours of community service. The program is intended to reduce the availability of alcohol to minors.
The funds will be used to reduce the number of alcoholic beverage sales to minors, obviously intoxicated patrons, illegal solicitations of alcohol, and other criminal activities such as the sale and possession of illegal drugs.
The program is intended to reduce the availability of alcohol to minors. Statistics show minors generally have a higher rate of driving while intoxicated crashes than adults. Studies also show the combination of alcohol and youth tends to increase criminal conduct. According to the American Medical Association, underage drinking can increase chances of risky sexual behavior and teen pregnancy, juvenile delinquency, compromise health, and result in unintentional injury and death.
The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) is a part of the Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency. This project is part of the ABC's Education and Teen Alcohol Enforcement Program Grant, funded by the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
