The Santa Barbara Police Department was awarded a grant of $99,108 from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to conduct enforcement operations and inspections of licensed premises.
The grant is administered through the ABC Grant Assistance Program, and the funded activities will take place July 1 of this year through June 30, 2013.
The Santa Barbara Police Department, with assistance from ABC, will be conducting several operations during this time that will include minor decoy operations, shoulder tap operations and IMPACT inspections for the purpose of reducing the number of licensees that sell alcohol to minors, reducing youth access to alcohol, and reducing alcohol-related crime in and around licensed premises.
Alcohol consumption is a factor in many crimes and tragedies that affect youth younger than age 21, such as driving under the influence, battery, sexual assault, traffic collision and suicide. Problem retail outlets can become magnets for crime and can contribute to the deterioration of the quality of life in surrounding neighborhoods.
Minor decoy operations focus on retailers who sell alcohol to minors while shoulder tap operations focus on adults who furnish alcohol to minors. IMPACT (Informed Merchants Preventing Alcohol-Related Crime Tendencies) inspections focus on holding licensees accountable to state and local laws associated with the sale of alcohol.
Sgt. Riley Harwood is a public information officer for the Santa Barbara Police Department.
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