The ABC’s Strict Application of Penalties for Sales to Minors
By John Edwards and John Hinman
The Modern History of the Use of Decoys to buy Alcohol
Hinman & Carmichael has been representing licensees charged by the ABC with sales to minor decoy violations for over 30 years. We have defended hundreds of cases during that period. We appealed one particularly egregious minor decoy case in 1992 on a constitutional defense. Our grounds for appeal were that the program was entrapment, there were no standards of conduct of the program that made it fair and there was no statutory exception allowing the program to exist. Because of our appeal, the entire state-wide decoy program was suspended for almost two years before the California Supreme Court ruled in 1994 that law enforcement could use minor decoys provided there were standards. We ultimately prevailed to the extent that the industry, in Rule 141 in 1996, established required standards of law enforcement conduct when running minor decoy programs.
Read MoreBy Erin Kelleher and Rob Tobiassen, Compliance Consultant and Former Chief Counsel (TTB)
On Friday, TTB issued an industry circular to help winery licensees struggling with an unintended consequence of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”) - - which became effective on January 1 of this year. The “fix” to the problem described below is only temporary and expires on June 30, 2018. Hopefully that is enough time for a permanent solution to be adopted in a technical corrections bill, or by Rule change.
Read MoreBy: Barbara Snider, Senior Counsel, and John Hinman, Senior Partner
Welcome to the insanely complicated world of alcohol regulation!
New legislative changes have now clarified that it’s a crime for almost all licensees to provide free transportation home from events and evenings out.
Unbeknown to most, California ABC law has consistently prohibited almost all alcoholic beverage licensees from providing free rides to customers because “free rides” are considered by the ABC an impermissible “thing of value,” and are considered by the anti-alcohol forces an inducement to consumption. While this prohibition has seldom (if ever) been enforced, it places responsible licensees who want to make sure that their customers are getting home safely in a very difficult spot – do they violate the law by providing a free ride home, or do they potentially endanger the community by allowing an inebriated customer to drive (or get) home on their own?
Read MoreTTB is making its presence known in the unfair trade practice arena. In July 2017, it announced a joint investigation by TTB and Florida State Authorities in the Miami area and then in September it followed with a joint investigation by TTB and Illinois State Authorities in Chicago, the Quad Cities, and Peoria. Both press releases from TTB emphasize these investigations are focusing on “pay to play” schemes.
Read More2018 is almost upon us! This coming week will be full of folks celebrating the new year and saying good-bye to 2017. That this year’s NYE weekend party calendar is four nights long has not been lost on the police, or the ABC.
LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS, WITH AND WITHOUT DECOYS, ARE OUT IN FORCE.
The ABC’s most recent bulletin warned all licensees that connect with consumers, including producers with tasting rooms, and all on-premises and off-premises retailers, to be on their best behavior during the upcoming holiday.
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