Posted on 04/13/2006 8:50:53 AM PDT by Snickering Hound
DALLAS — The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission said Wednesday it has suspended a crackdown on public intoxication after a public outcry over the program that sends undercover officers into drinking establishments.
The commission announced last week that it was conducting an internal investigation of the program.
Beck said the commission opted to put the program on hold "just to give us time to sift through all the information we've received and pull together all the information and determine the best way to proceed."
More than 2,200 bar patrons or workers have been arrested or issued citations since August. The purpose is to stop the sale of alcoholic beverages to people who are drunk and, as a result, cut down on the number of drunken drivers.
But media reports about the program after a sting last month in the Dallas suburb of Irving prompted criticism that the arrests could prove bad for business if they drive away conventions and other tourists.
(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...
About damn time! This sobriety is killing me!
What did I read on FR somewhere yesterday....."If God didn't want us to drink alcohol, why did He give us livers?"
Nice little money maker there!
The income from fines is mindfull of those speed traps that seem to pop up toward the end of each month.
a better idea is to sit in the police car, in the parking lot of the establishment and nab those drunkereds who dare to drive home after one to many.
I also believe a cop car in the parking lot of such an establishment = increased revenue for cabbies :)
Just taking it off the table awhile until the heat dies down.
At $500 a pop, they stand to make a lot of money on the fines.
I would imagine the outcry from citizens arrested on their own private property contributed to this decision as well.
In Boston there was a P.I. arrest of a women riding in the back of a cab. The driver had been pulled over for some traffic infraction (speeding, running a light, etc.).
Being in a cab doesn't make you safe from Johnny Law.
"God gave us beer because He loves us and wants us to be happy."
- Benjamin Franklin
MADD is MAD!!
The commission opted to put the program on hold for about one month.
The Texas Legislature is back in session for one month.
Coincidence? I think not.
isn't Boston run by commies?
I like it!
No, it makes sense.
Texas LEOs are arresting and fining US citizens for trivial things (such as sipping a pint at a bar) because they know that US citizens will pay the fines to avoid prison.
Illegal aliens are cruising around on US highways with no ID, no insurance, no title/license tag, yet NO ONE dares to arrest them and send their lawbreaking hides back to Mexico?
America is going the way of the Roman Empire, and if something does not change, we will share the same demise.
If they were illegal aliens, they would have walked.
This "arrest the US citizen, but spare the illegal alien" stuff will eventually destroy our nation.
Count on it.
True, but nothing compared to the possible revenue lost to the city of Dallas due to this stupid sting.
I can't believe this kind of stupidity would happen in TX. I would expect it here in CT, or in NY, MA, MD, NJ and some others, but not in Bush country.
The Law of Unintended Consequences is self-enforcing.
I'm sure Dallas has made enough money from the arrests to fill their coiffers for a couple of months.
I'm sure the Dallas Police will be back at it when the well runs dry.
Kind of reminded me of an Alfred Hitchcock episode years ago. A Sheriff was driving a couple MPH under the speed limit to force people to pass. When they passed, he'd give them a ticket. Legalized larceny.
I'm sure there was some serious pressure coming from the hotel owners. That's big big money for downtown Dallas. I suspect the pressure went from these people to the governor, then from the governor down to TABC.
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