Earlier this month, the Joplin Police Department announced they would be conducting alcohol compliance checks at retailers throughout the city.
Regardless of the social media bulletin several liquor stores were recently cited.
Through a press release to media partners and a posting on their Facebook page on November 7, Joplin Police announced that in the coming weeks, the department would be conducting underage alcohol compliance checks.
At the time commenters on its social media page wondered why the department would publicly announce when it was going to conduct the compliance checks. It essentially gives a leg up to retailers. JPD said the purpose of these checks is to assess the level of accessibility of alcohol within our community and prevent the sale of alcoholic beverages to minors.
Last week, JPD published the results of the compliance checks with nearly 20% of retailers selling alcohol to minors including two Zipz gas stations and Macadoddles.
Of the 32 locations checked, 6 locations were found to be non-compliant and sold alcohol to minors. Citations were issued for sales to a minor at each of those locations. In a press release, JPD says that it hopes all retailers will refuse to sell alcoholic beverages to underage buyers.
To help achieve this goal, The Alliance of Southwest Missouri provides a free server training program for businesses and their employees. The program provides tools to assist employees in checking identification and ensuring they know the law, their responsibilities, and their rights.
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