A recent settlement between a University of New Hampshire student and a Durham store owner has armed New Hampshire alcohol purveyors with the power to file suit against underage patrons using false identification to purchase alcoholic beverages.
The student, Jeremy Reny, was caught using his older brother's valid driver's license. The New Hampshire Liquor Comission cited Reny for alcohol possession after he successfully purchased alcohol from the Durham Marketplace. Chuck Cressy, the store's owner, sued Reny after he was fined $250 for the transaction.
Reny agreed to a 30-hour community service program related to alcohol/substance abuse instead of a jury trial involving a possible fine.
News of this settlement provoked immediate responses from Hanover businesses that sell alcohol and consequently handle buyers with fake IDs.
Jack Stinson of Stinson's Village Store in Hanover -- which has the highest volume of keg beer sales in New Hamsphire -- said he plans to take full legal advantage of the new precedent.
"If we were stuck with a major fine, I think we would certainly sue," Stinson said. "If someone knowingly misrepresents himself, they are just as guilty as someone selling it to him."
Cressy said that his store had taken sufficient preventative measures against underage buyers by investing in an ID scanner, employee training, various posters and cashier T-shirts inscribed with the fluorescent message "zero, zilch, nada, zero."
"Responsibility needs to lie on the individuals intending to buy alcohol by means of fake ID as long as the store has used every resource available to prevent sale," Cressy said.
According Alden Moore, the Chief of Enforcement for the New Hampshire Liquor Commission, owning a fake ID is a class A misdemeanor that creates a criminal record for the offender. Repercussions range from a minimum fine of $250 to a maximum penalty of one-year imprisonment and/or $2,000 fine. The fine is doubled on the second offense.
A law that would double all of these fines is currently pending in the New Hampshire Legislature.
For any violation of their liquor license, stores incur fines that range from $100 to $500. Most damaging, though, is the loss of a liquor license for one to 10 days.
"In the short term, it probably gives the angry store owner a recourse against the patron who puts the store at risk," Moore said.
Stinson also said that a liquor store could be held responsible for accidents resulting from underage consumption and purchases, prompting many liquor stores, including Stinson's, to buy insurance.
Molly's Restaurant manager Randy Summaresell said that Molly's would not pursue legal action even if fined.
"I think everyone here is aware of our responsibility to make sure that everyone in our restaurant is of legal age, and I don't think its an option to sue anyone here," Summarsell said.
John MacDonald, a manager at Murphy's On the Green, enthusiastically supported the ruling and its affirmation of retailer's rights.
"Our liquor license is worth more than some punk 19-year-old kid coming in here trying to drink," MacDonald said.
According to MacDonald, Murphy's checks every slightly questionable person's identification and has never been fined by the state liquor commission.
In addition to paying meticulous attention to IDs, both Stinson's and the Durham Marketplace bought ID scanners that have reduced attempted underage purchases drastically.
Stinson also spoke of an elaborate system that store employees use to notify the police of a person attempting to buy alcohol with a fake ID without the buyer noticing.
Despite the preponderance of preventative measures, Moore is skeptical that retailer and even state technology can keep pace with today's youth.
"Its reasonable to believe that when it comes to a technology battle, its going to be an uphill fight because we're looking at a generation of people who are very technology savvy," he said.
