Agents working to ensure a safe prom season
(Columbus) – Undercover agents with the Ohio Investigative Unit are taking an active role in enforcing Ohio’s alcohol laws to ensure everyone has an enjoyable and safe prom season. Agents throughout Ohio will be conducting compliance checks on liquor permit premises, educating Ohio’s high school students through Sober Truth classes, and working with local alcohol coalitions and law enforcement to bring awareness to the dangers of underage drinking.
“This is a memorable time for Ohio’s students, parents and school administrators,” said Agent-in-Charge Eric Wolf. “We don’t want these memories to be tarnished by underage drinking – remember, You Booze, You Lose.”
Agents remind liquor permit premises to watch for underage individuals attempting to purchase beer – often with a false identification. Clerks should also lookout for individuals 21 and over purchasing alcohol for a person who is not yet 21. In Ohio it is illegal to share in the cost of purchasing alcoholic beverages, or attempts to do so – even if the sale is refused.
Parents who are hosting a party for their child’s friends should also be aware of Ohio’s laws and how they could impact them. In the state of Ohio, parents cannot give alcohol to children who are under 21, even with the other parents’ permission. Parents also cannot allow minors to consume alcohol in their home.
Anyone convicted of attempting to purchase alcohol as a minor, sharing in the cost, using false identification or furnishing alcohol to a minor may face a maximum sentence of six months in jail and/or a $1,000 fine.
Anyone under 21 years of age who is caught driving with a blood alcohol concentration of .02 percent or more can be arrested. If convicted the individual could have his or her driver license suspended for at least 90 days, up to a maximum of two years. Also, four points would be added to their driving record.
Agents are also asking for local hotels and limousine companies to be vigilant and report underage drinking and parties to local authorities.
If you have information about a bar, store or carryout selling beer or liquor to persons under the age of 21, please notify the Ohio Investigative Unit by calling #677 on your cell phone.
