Alcohol sales to minors reported in Lynnwood

Published 8:53 pm Sunday, May 3, 2009

LYNNWOOD — More than one in five businesses here sold alcohol to underage police agents during a mid-April sting.

Underage students were able to buy alcoholic beverages in eight of 39 stores, police said.

That’s too many, and it is more than the regular stings normally catch, spokeswoman Shannon Sessions said.

“We would like to see it lower,” she said. “That’s why we do these types of stings.”

Businesses caught selling to minors are forwarded to the state Liquor Control Board.

Student agents in the sting were between 17 and 20 years old. They were told to show their actual driver’s licenses if they were asked, Sessions said.

In three stores, cashiers sold alcohol to the agents despite seeing an underage ID.

“That’s more critical,” Sessions said. “Are they purposefully selling to a minor or are they not paying attention? We don’t know.”

The sting was timed around spring break and summer, heavy drinking seasons for teenagers, Sessions said.

Parents of underage drinkers should watch out for warning signs, she said. Those signs include mood changes, school problems, switching friends or the sudden use of strong perfumes or cologne, she said.

Chris Fyall: 425-339-3447, cfyall@heraldnet.com.