Local News
ISP sting nets 11 businesses
EFFINGHAM —
Illinois State Police reported Thursday its officers caught 11 area businesses selling alcohol to minors during undercover operations in Effingham County last week.
District 12 officers partnered with the Illinois Liquor Commission to conduct the routine alcohol compliance checks at 30 licensed establishments in the area on the evening of July 23.
“It’s just a way to keep the kids safe,” Safety Education Officer Marla Tolliver said of last week’s checks, which unearthed a comparatively large number of businesses selling alcohol to people under the age of 21.
For at least one of those establishments, last week wasn’t the first time it was caught up in a compliance check.
Wessel’s Grocery in Teutopolis was among those cited by state police during last week’s check, but it also was among the offenders during last summer’s compliance check — held a year ago to the day on July 23, 2009.
Though state police can only arrest the employee who made an illegal sale, the business itself can wind up in front of its town’s liquor commissioner, usually the mayor.
Repeat offenders can have their license to sell alcohol suspended or revoked and could even get in trouble with the state commission.
In the case of Wessel’s, the 2009 offense partnered with earlier citations landed the grocer a $1,000 fine and a 21-day liquor license suspension last fall. Teutopolis’ liquor control ordinance is considered one of the toughest in central Illinois.
Other businesses state police reported as making illegal alcohol sales during last week’s operation include:
• Bangkok Thai Restaurant, Effingham
• B & R Beverage Connection, Effingham
• BJ’s Downtown Lounge, Effingham
• Citgo, Montrose
• Foxx’s Den, Effingham
• K Bowl, Effingham
• Mach 1 Food Shop, Effingham
• Quick Stop, Effingham
• Ruby Tuesday, Effingham
• Scrubby’s Pub, Effingham
The 11 reported violators brought down the compliance rate for the latest operation to roughly 63 percent — a rather low figure given last month’s compliance rate of 95 percent for checks conducted throughout the state and an Effingham-area compliance rate of 90 percent during the last round of checks in December 2009.
Tolliver credited at least part of the increase to the longer-than-usual gap between compliance checks — a little over six months.
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