Crime & Safety
Albany Police Crack Down on Underage Alcohol, Tobacco Sales
Stop by Royal Ground Coffee on Monday at 10 a.m. to chat with local police. It's part of a new effort the department is making to be more accessible to the public.
Albany and Berkeley police have been working together this year to to minors.
There will be monthly enforcement operations, said Sgt. Art Pagsolingan of the , where police will try to catch businesses in the act of not following laws surrounding these sales.
"They have to do their part to keep minors from buying these products," said Pagsolingan. "We have a lot of problems with the kids. They're getting the alcohol from somewhere. It creates havoc when they drink."
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Store clerks can face stiff fines if they don't follow proper procedures during transactions.
"Sometimes they ask for the card, but they're not paying attention to the date," Pagsolingan said.
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On Jan. 11, two plainclothes police, along with an investigator from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control and two teenage "decoys," visited 12 spots in Albany, including bars, liquor stores and convenience stores, to see if anyone would buy the teens beer.
"It was a slow night," said Pagsolingan, and no one did. "But even if there are no sales at all, no violations, that's great because it means they're doing their job."
On Jan. 21, in an operation aimed at tobacco sales, investigators visited nine local businesses with .
A clerk at sold cigarettes to a 14-year-old, said Pagsolingan, and was cited.
The sergeant said teen drinking can lead to "kids being truant, malicious mischief and graffiti," and that he thinks it's important for police to do their best to crack down on it.
"You can't save the world," he said. "But at least we can try to limit the sale of alcohol to teens."
These operations are funded by a grant received by the Berkeley Police Department, said Pagsolingan, which included a suggestion to help smaller agencies, such as Albany and Emeryville, address the problem.
Community members have a chance today to speak with police about these efforts, or unrelated concerns, at during the department's first "" event. Parents have two opportunities in March to get informed and participate in public discussions.
Everybody makes mistakes ... ! If there's something in this article you think should be corrected, or if something else is amiss, give editor Emilie Raguso a call at 510-459-8325 or shoot her an e-mail at emilier@patch.com.
