Clarksville Police Department releases Alcoholic Beverage Commission Operation results from April 1st, 2015

Clarksville, TN – On Wednesday, April 1st, 2015 Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) Agents of the Clarksville Police Department’s Special Operations Unit conducted compliance checks on 18 businesses targeting sales of alcohol to underage persons.

Only 1 of the businesses checked was cited for selling alcohol to underage persons.

Captain Gipson, the Special Operations Unit Commander, stated that, while the majority of businesses comply with the law, any business selling alcohol to underage persons is unacceptable.

The business employee that serves to an underage person receives a criminal citation, appears in court and typically loses his/her job. The business is summoned before the City Beer Board and is subject to civil penalties and or loss of its beer permit.

The majority of businesses train their employees well and are found to be in compliance with the law. The compliant businesses have one common denominator; not only do they require identification of each customer to which they serve alcohol, but they look at the identification to ensure the customer is 21 years old.

To make identification checks even easier for all store clerks, each Tennessee Driver License has a red border around the picture that states “UNDER 21.”

With dedicated ABC Agents whose primary focus is the enforcement of city and state ABC laws, the conducting of compliance checks as well as regulatory checks are here to stay. Captain Gipson issues a word of caution— “If you fail to ask for identification and serve alcohol to someone under 21, the next person asking for identification just may be an ABC agent asking for yours.”

Agent Lee and Agent Steinlage are the lead investigators.

To report sales of alcohol to underage persons contact the Special Operations Unit at 931.645.1126 or the CrimeStoppers TIPS Hotline at 931.645.TIPS (8477).

ABC Operation Results

ABC- Alcoholic Beverage Commission