WESTFIELD – The License Commission voted last night to summons in six licensees to a violation hearing for failing a Westfield Police Department alcohol compliance sting in September.
The Community Policing bureau of the department used underaged “operatives” who were instructed to attempt to purchase alcoholic beverages, typically light beer, and notify the assigned team leader by cellphone if they were served.
The city’s License Commission has established guidelines for sting operations under which the police and the underaged volunteers operate. The youths are instructed to carry their Massachusetts License and offer that as identification if requested by the store clerk or bar server. The only other item in their possession is a $10 bill given to them by the police officer with which to purchase alcohol.
Six teams of officers and underaged volunteers conducted compliance checks package stores, restaurants and bars. In at least two cases the volunteers were asked and produced their driver’s license which the server looked at, then served that person.
Commissioner Edward Diaz said that servers and package stores employees should be trained to observe the orientation of the driver’s license.
“A minor’s license is vertical, not horizontal,” Diaz said. “And the server has to know the dates to determine if a person is under 21 years of age.”
Commissioner Alice Dawicki said that math calculation is incumbent on the server because in some cases a person may have actually turned 21, the legal age to purchase and consume alcoholic beverage, but has yet to obtain a new license from the Registry of Motor Vehicle.
The following licensed premises failed the sting: Tekoa Country Club of 459 Russell Road; 76 Discount Liquors Package Store of Southwick Road; Shenanigans Pub of 150-154 Elm Street; Mr. Phipps Package Store of 113 North Elm Street; Pasquale’s Italian Family Restaurant of 288 Elm Street; and Pop The Cork Package Store of 5 East Silver Street.
The violation hearings will be conducted at the commission’s next meeting slated for Nov. 10.
In other business, the commission voted to accept the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Commissions ruling which will allow package stores to open earlier on Sundays effective on October 26.
The stores have been allowed to open at noon on Sunday, but under the new ABCC regulations will have the opportunity to open their doors at 10 a.m.
The License Commission also voted to approve the application of local package stores seeking the earlier opening time. Only one package store in the city, Westfield Liquors, located on Main Street, did not submit the form seeking the earlier opening, but could do so in the future.
