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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (May 5, 1978)
THE BATTALION FRIDAY, MAY 5, 1978 Page 7 ce Open inspections are effective s e an Mas •r in A, ■ng&i 'ame sti tion of every person in the place. The patrons, most of whom ap peared to be in their teens, stopped their pool-playing or beer-drinking and watched as Ward strolled across the front of the room. He stopped in front of the rows of pool tables and surveyed the crowd. 1977, s ad\js indents all ill, nt arei mtoi d to ant rel ney, E- A&Mi i Robis; •om Ap ien be! o privi assists n "leys« respy. ow, se old rut rails rementi .egislati oss to | iind or sexual: id r the l Geer it, woo son ne fork iloyees coerci aral fan g a jol esday. bill )-Detr( Liquor law checking takes skill By ELAINE MERRIFIELD Don Ward was hardly incon spicuous as he entered the pool hall and game room. His short hair and suit and tie commanded the atten- “The key word is volun tary compliance. Most people will obey the law if know there is someone who will see that they d 0 r They, in turn, stood watching him through the thick cloud of cigarette smoke that hung over the room. After a few tense moments. Ward approached a young woman who was drinking a beer. “I’m with the Alcoholic Beverage Commission,” he said, flashing his badge. “Can I see some ID, please?” The girl handed him a temporary t/v driving permit. She said she had just turned 18 the week before and hadn’t received her permanent | /Tj license yet. rvil ; He asked her when she expected to get the license. He then looked around one more time and walked Ofl out. C/ 11 Ward, who is an inspector for the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commis sion (TABC), was making routine in spections of businesses that allow on-premises consumption of al cohol. The pool hall does not sell beer, but many of the young people who come there bring beer with them. The object of these inspections is not so much to catch liquor law violators, but to encourage the own ers to police themselves, Ward ex plained. “The key word is voluntary com pliance,” he said. “Most people will obey the law if they know there is someone who will see that they do.” In order to achieve this voluntary compliance, Ward usually does not n 8, w ® |work under cover. By making his in- v it sin spgctions while dressed in a suit, he t a won T ets t he owners, employees and pa- brcastf k^w that he is working in an official capacity. He said this female enc0 urages them to comply with the liquor laws. During a typical investigation, Ward first looks to see if he can spot anyone who is obviously a minor consuming alcohol. Then he goes to the bar, shows his badge and iden tifies himself to the bartender. He tells the bartender he is making a routine inspection. He then goes behind the bar and inspects the liqour licenses to see that they are correctly displayed. He also looks over the liquor stock, checking to see that the necessary TABC stamps are on the bottles and that these stamps have been re moved from any empty bottles. The stamps show that the liquor was purchased from an authorized source. The owners or managers are usu ally friendly and cooperative. Ward knows several of them personally and chats for a few minutes, warning them to check for minors who might try to purchase alcohol. Ward said he feels that the effec tiveness of these routine investiga tions isn’t always immediately visible since they are not reflected in the records as are actual citations. However, he said, the investiga tions are probably just as effective as citations in controlling liquor law violations. When a TABC inspector spots a minor illegally possessing or con suming acohol, he usually issues him a citation. The purchase, pos- “It’s a home problem,” he said. “The parents can control it.” Many of the violations by minors occur in convenience stores, said Ward. The kids can run in, make their purchase and run out. They don’t have to spend much time in the place. Ward inspects the convenience stores by parking across the street and watching for any violations. Be cause this type of store usually has a glass front, he is able to see inside most of the store. The length of time he spends watching depends on the complaints received about the store. Usually he stays for about five or 10 minutes. Most of the complaints the TABC receives are from police officers or police reports. It occasionally re ceives complaints from parents. Restaurants that serve alcoholic beverages are also somewhat of a problem. Ward said. This is because the waitresses tend to think in terms of food, not alcohol. They usually don’t stop to consider if their cus tomer is a minor. They Bryan office of the TABC is district headquarters for a 14-county area, including Brazos County. Eight inspectors, a district super visor and assistant district super visor cover this area. The inspectors work alone and with other law enforcement officials. Ward said he likes to work with another inspector or partolman be cause they can spot violations easier when working together. The mixed beverage establishments tend to be especially cooperative because of their high cost of investment. Working with another officer also makes it easier to control a poten tially dangerous situation. The mixed beverage establish ments tend to be especially coopera tive because of their high cost of in vestment, Ward said. A license to sell mixed drinks is $2,000 for the first year. This amount is decreasd by $500 each year until it reaches $500. This is compared to a beer license which is $25 a year. Ward stressed the idea of volun tary compliance and cooperation with the owners. “You’re better off working with your licensees,” he said. Ward also said he tries not to interfere with the patrons’ enjoy ment when he makes his inspec tions. “Most of the people aren’t doing anything wrong,” he said. “We want to inconvenience them as little as possible.” Play it smooth: just pour Comfort® over ice and have your own rocks concert. Neat! A great performer with cola, 7UP, tonic, orange juice, milk, etc., too! Nothing’s so delicious as Southern Comforfbn-the-rocks! SOUTHERN COMFORT CORPORATION, 100 PROOF LIQUEUR. ST LOUIS. M0 63132 The effectiveness of these routine investiga tions isn’t always immed iately visible since they are not reflected in the records as are actual citations. session or consumption of alcohol by a minor is a misdemeanor, punisha ble by a fine of $25 to $100 for a first offense. It is TABC policy to handle 15, 16 and 17 year-olds in this man ner. Minors who are 14 years-old and younger are handled through the juvenile department. Administrative action can be taken against the establishment which made the alcohol available to the minor. This may result in a fine or a suspension of the liquor license. Sgt. Gene Rochen, juvenile offi cer for the College Station Police Department, said much of the prob lem with minors illegally consuming alcohol is attributable to the par ents. VILLA MARIA ONE-HOUR CLEANERS One-hour dry cleaning available on request One-day shirt service H FREE SUMMER STORAGE Alterations • Suede • Leathers Open 7:30-6:00 Mon.-Fri. 8:00-1:00 Sat. 710 VILLA MARIA 822-3937 THE BATT DOES IT DAILY Monday through ALL FASHION JEANS & CORDUROYS FOR GUYS ALL GIRLS JEANS (All jeans on sale except men’s denim blue jeans) REDBONE JEANS 846-5580 111 BOYETT Friday Let OrnaMetal Castings reproduce your diploma in metal METAL DIPLOMAS — Photomechanically reproduced from your . 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Your original diploma will be photographed and returned to you in minutes. A beautiful framed reproduction will be mailed to you shortly. Our showroom is located on the West Loop (FM 2818) at Carson Street (Next door to Central Freight) We have handcrafted A&M Ringcrest products such as Pen Sets, Belt Buckles, Double Pen Sets, Doorknockers, Bookends, Nameplates, and Paperweights. We also have bronze cast ings of Insignia and other speciality items. u OrnaMetal Castings, Inc. One Bronze West Box 3188 BryanJX 77801 (713)779-1400 } * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * m * * * * * * I #, % * * % * Extensive trial experience since 1965 general practice District Attorney-5 years; County Attorney-4 years; Assistant District Attorney Travis Co.-2 years. Assistant District Attorney Brazos Co.- 1 year. Author legal publications Guest lecturer Licensed by Supreme Court of Texas — Federal-Southern and Western Districts, 5th Circuit, Supreme Court of United States. L.L.B. —- J.D. University of Texas 1966 ★ Dedicated Public Servant The McDonalds have two sons, Scott, age 3, and Don, age 7 months. Tom and his wife Caroline were married in 1965. While District Attorney, 152 defendants were sentenced to the Texas Department of Corrections for a total of 1,766 years. McDonald obtained restitution for victims of crimes in excess of $50,000. ★ Affiliations Member of the St. Andrews Episcopal Church of Bryan and former vestryman; Past President: Brazos County Bar Association, Environmental Action Council of Brazos County, Bluebonnet Psychiatric Center Board of Directors; Past member Board of Directors Boys Club of Bryan; incorporator of the Brazos County Humane Society; legal advisor Girls Club of Brazos County; Easter Seal Society Board; Charter member of the Bryan Breakfast Lions Club. "Your vote and support will be greatly appreciated." W.T.(Tom) McDonald, jr. FOR YOUR DISTRICT JUDGE * U * * 1* * I S* & i Pol. Adv. Paid for by W.T. 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