Benicia Businesses Refuse to Sell Alcohol to Minor

On March 15, 2012, Detective Ted Criado of the Benicia PD Youth Services Bureau and School Resource Officer Will Patterson conducted compliancy checks of local businesses that sell alcoholic beverages.  The compliancy checks were conducted with the use of an 18-year-old female decoy.  In addition to the compliancy checks, a "shoulder tap" operation was also done. 

The decoy entered 14 businesses during the afternoon and evening hours and tried to purchase alcoholic beverages.  If asked for identification or if asked her age, the decoy would provide her true ID or provide her true age. 

While conducting the "shoulder tap" operation, the same minor decoy asked customers to purchase an alcoholic beverage for her.  The decoy would tell the person she was not old enough to purchase the alcohol legally and would ask them to purchase it for her.  

During this portion of the operation, two subjects were cited for furnishing an alcoholic beverage to a minor under 21 years of age.  Both were cited and released at the scene.   

The citations will be sent to the Solano County District Attorney for prosecution.  

Police reported that many of the citizens approached by the minor decoy expressed disappointment toward her when asked to make the illegal purchase. 

Funding for the compliance checks is provided through the Solano county Board of Supervisors health Access Grant Program.  Benicia PD will partner with agents from the California Alcohol Beverage Control and conduct more compliance checks in the future. 

The following businesses refused sell alcoholic beverages to a minor decoy:

          2064 Columbus Parkway                                  

                        890 Southampton Road                    

Texaco Gas Station       6001 Goodyear Road        

                 816 Southampton Road                   

                 1501 East Fifth St. n

   510 West J Street                

       1925 Military East

   10 Solano Square                  

Seven Eleven                500 ​Military East

                 50 Solano Square                        ​            

        457 Military East

                      ​   2100 Columbus Pkwy

Union 76                       505 East 5th

                   60 Solano Square

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If there’s something in this article you think should be corrected, or if something else is amiss, call editor JB Davis at 707-628-0051 or email him at benicia@patch.com.