The 11 clerks busted in Wednesday night's underage alcohol-sales sting are responsible for the $632 fine the citation carries, but business owners aren't getting off scot-free, the Carson City Sheriff's Department said Thursday.
"With these results we can go to the liquor board and say, 'These places have sold alcohol to a minor -- put their licenses on probation,'" said Sgt. Bob White of the program sponsored by the Nevada Juvenile Justice Commission.
Of the 41 businesses visited by underage decoys during the department's third alcohol sting, clerks or bartenders sold alcohol to the minors at Crossroads Lounge, Quik Stop Market, Winner's Corner on Rand Avenue, Albertsons on South Carson Street, Mi Casa Too, Scolari's Market, both north and south Carson Street, AM/PM Mini Marts, Mo & Sluggo's and 7-Eleven on North Carson Street.
Two were repeat offenders: Mi Casa Too and 7-Eleven, White said.
"This proves to us people just still haven't gotten a clue," he said. "This is a problem and it's going to take some aggressive enforcement."
The businesses that refused to serve the minors were: Shell Gas on South Carson Street, Eagle Station Bar, Fandango Casino, Winner's Corner on East Fifth Street, Raley's, Smiths, Albertsons on Highway 50 East, Albertsons on North Carson Street, Slot World, The County Store, AM/PM Mini Marts in the 700 block of South Carson Street, the 4300 block of North Carson Street and the 2700 block of Highway 50 East, Gas and Save, 7-Eleven in the 3000 and 3800 blocks of Highway 50 East, Sav-on Drugs, Chevron Gas in the 1100 block of North Carson Street, Lamplighter Lounge, Javelins, Cue Phoria, Glen Eagles, Joe Bob's, Decades, Cheers, Kathy's Someplace Else, Frontier Market, Eagle Gas, Longs Drugs and Safeway.
All 138 establishments that serve alcohol in the city couldn't be hit Wednesday night, but that doesn't mean they won't be, White said. The department is going to continue to perform these operations, and if a business was hit this time, they shouldn't think they're off the hook for the next sting operation.
"Next time they serve alcohol to a minor, it could be a decoy. They'll never know," he said.
Despite Carson City's low arrest rates of juveniles driving undeer the influence, he said, "if the teens can buy the alcohol, they can have the parties, they can get into the cars and they can crash and kill each other."
It's a costly lesson for the clerks cited and the business owners if their licenses are suspended, he warned.
"Businesses should take a lesson from the results," he said. "Employees aren't diligent in their enforcement because businesses aren't offering the proper training.
"They need to make sure their clerks understand the ramifications of everything they do," he said. "Why not do a little preventive enforcement instead of reactive enforcement?"