Sacramento Businesses to pay tab for public drunkenness (No booze for bums)

Sacramento Bee ^ | June 5, 2002 | Ramon Coronado

[nimc]

Sacramento County store owners will face criminal charges if they sell alcohol to known street alcoholics, a move lauded by law enforcement Tuesday as a way to clean up blight but condemned by some saying it unfairly targets businesses.

Under the program, store owners will be given binders containing photos of habitual drinkers. If they are caught knowingly selling alcohol to those listed in the binder, they face a $1,000 fine or a year in jail.

[nimc]

Oh, I get it! The bums are victims and the merchants are the cause of the blight in downtown! Why didn't I think of that. We need another law!

And such an easy, workable solution too!

[Phantom Lord]

If i was a bum I would challenge the law on the grounds that they are denying me the right to purchase a legal product. While it is settled law that a visibly drunk individual can be denyed the purchase of alcohol, I would think that absent being visibly drunk, they could not deny the sale.

Well sir, I would like to sell you this Wild Irish Rose, but it says here that you are most likely to become drunk if I sell it to you so I can not.

How about they institute a "Bum Tax" on alcohol and those on the list have to pay a very high tax on their purchases.

[wheezer]

Did you hear the one about the hobo who walks up to the counter of a hardware store and asks for a pint of turpentine?

[Ajnin]

"Our goal is not to prosecute store owners and employees, but educate people that they should not sell alcohol to these individuals," Maxwell said.

What an idiotic statement. Prosecuting store owners is exactly what they are doing.

[joesnuffy]

"Our goal is not to prosecute store owners and employees, but educate people that they should not sell alcohol to these individuals," Maxwell said.

Thats right our goal is to get re-elected yr after yr. and if we fine a few here and there or
maybe close down a few stores and take back those expensive liquor licenses that are
limited in number maybe?...so we can resell them to our buds and campaign contributors? (Im just winging the possible posterior motives)

[ijcr]

In Florida this law has been on the books for ages.

A direct relative can declare a family member a habitual drunk, take a letter of declaration and a photograph to all the local liquor stores and bars and viola!.

562.50 (Furnishing intoxicants to habitual drunkards after notice) states in relevant part:

"Any person who shall sell, give away . . . alcoholic beverage . . . to any person habitually addicted to the use of any or all such intoxicating liquors, after having been given written notice by wife, husband, father, mother, sister, brother, child, or nearest relative that said person so addicted is an habitual drunkard and that the use of intoxicating drink or drinks is working an injury to the person using said liquors, or to the person giving said written notice, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

However,it does not consider the city or the state as a nearest relative unless they have given new meaning to "Uncle Sam."

[glorgau]

"If someone is refused alcohol because their picture is in the binder and if they get violent, who's responsible for the injuries, the store owner or the police who gave him the binder?" Ashley asked.

I'd say that its the fault of the wino that got violent.