6 busted for buying alcohol for minors in decoy sting operations in South Bay

Several people were cited for either selling alcohol to minors or buying it for them in Santa Clara County, police said Wednesday.

The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control worked in conjunction with police in San Jose and Santa Clara to try and curb sales to minors.

On Tuesday, ABC agents arrested three people for allegedly furnishing alcoholic beverages to minors in San Jose. The so-called "shoulder tap" bust targeted adults who purchase alcohol for people under 21. Agents used a decoy minor under direct supervision of law enforcement to stand outside a liquor or convenience store to ask customers to purchase alcohol for them, according to San Jose Police, which assisted ABC in the operation.

The penalty for buying alcohol for a minor is a minimum fine of $1,000 and 24 hours of community service, according to police.

In the city of Santa Clara last Friday, ABC cited three clerks for selling alcohol to minors, according to police.

This time, decoy minors were sent to businesses that sell alcoholic beverages to see which clerks would complete the purchase. A total of 17 businesses were approached this way, according to Santa Clara police.

Clerks that sell alcohol to minors face a minimum fine of $250 and between 24 and 32 hours of community service for their first violation. ABC may also take action against the licensing of the business, which could mean a fine, a suspension, or the permanent revocation of a license to sell alcoholic beverages.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that about a quarter of all fatal vehicle crashes involve underage drinking.

ABC said that since it began carrying out minor decoy operations in California in the 1980s, incidents of retail establishments selling alcohol to minors went from 40-50% of them doing so to below 10% in some cities now.