Pubdate: Sat, 30 Nov 2013
Source: Seattle Times (WA)
Copyright: 2013 The Seattle Times Company
Contact:  http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/409
Author: Bob Young

UNDERAGE ENFORCERS WILL TRY TO STING NEW POT STORES

Underage Stings to Test New Stores

A select group of minors will go into Washington's new legal pot 
stores on a covert mission: to try and buy weed for the state.

To curtail youth access to legal marijuana, state officials want to 
use minors in pot-buying stings next year when stores are expected to open.

Charged with implementing the new law that allows adults to possess 
an ounce of pot, the state Liquor Control Board already uses minors 
in "controlled buys" of alcohol at retail stores.

The board's enforcement chief said it makes sense to apply the same 
practice to pot, particularly with the federal Department of Justice 
watchdogging the state's newest legal intoxicant. "Of course the feds 
are looking at a tightly regulated market around youth access, and I 
think this shows we're being responsible," said Justin Nordhorn.

The agency also will ask the Legislature to set penalties for minors 
who attempt to purchase legal pot and those who use or manufacture 
fake ID cards for that purpose.

Alison Holcomb, chief author of the new law, said using minors in 
pot-buying stings would support the state and federal emphasis on 
limiting youth access. But as criminal-justice director for the ACLU 
of Washington, Holcomb does not believe that adding criminal laws for 
pot possession is a good idea. She said she would prefer a focus on 
other prevention strategies.

The head of a statewide substance-abuse prevention group also 
supports the stings, as long as minors are not put in any danger. 
Because pot shops may open as cash-only businesses, "it seems the 
potential for crime is higher, so protection for minors in sting 
operations must be seamless," said Derek Franklin, president of the 
Washington Association for Substance Abuse and Violence Prevention.

Stings appear to be warranted in alcohol enforcement. Data for the 
past 17 months show that alcohol retailers had an 85 percent 
compliance rate in youth stings. In other words, for every seven 
times minors working for the state tried to buy alcohol in stores, 
bars or restaurants, they succeeded once.

While Washington has licensed more than 20,000 locations to sell 
alcohol, the state plans to allow just 334 marijuana stores, making 
it easier, in theory, to enforce marijuana laws at them.

The pot stings would work similarly to the alcohol buys, Nordhorn said.

The state now hires 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds across the state to use 
in alcohol stings, according to Nordhorn. About 30 minors, both men 
and women, work for the liquor board. They get paid about $10 an 
hour, Nordhorn said, and they tend to be students interested in law 
enforcement and substance-abuse prevention.

He declined to make any available for an interview. "We try to 
protect their identities because we don't want anyone knocking on 
their door," he said.

Nordhorn plans to send minors into pot stores to try to purchase 
products. It's the store clerks' responsibility to make sure 
customers are 21. The law does not even allow minors in stores.

When asked for ID, the minors would provide their real IDs. In 
Washington, those under 21 have driver's licenses with a vertical 
design unlike licenses for adults, which have a horizontal layout.

When clerks see the vertical design, they should know to check the 
license closely. (You could be over 21 and still have a vertical 
layout if you got that license when you were a minor, Nordhorn notes.)

Nordhorn said some clerks ask about age but fail to actually read the 
date of birth on a license. "Most mistakes aren't intentional. The 
sales are mostly oversights on the clerks' part," he said.

Some clerks have tried to confiscate IDs, which is not appropriate, 
he said. "We recommend you don't get into conflict with a minor; just 
refuse the sale and have them leave," he added.

If there is a pot sale, the minor would go outside, where an 
enforcement officer would be waiting, Nordhorn said. The purchased 
pot would be secured as evidence, and the officer would go in and 
cite the store for a violation.

The penalty for a first offense is a 10-day suspension of a store's 
license or a $2,500 fine. A second violation in a three-year window 
would lead to a 30-day license suspension; a third violation in three 
years would cost a business its license.

The clerk also could be charged with a felony, as it remains a crime 
to furnish minors with any kind of pot in Washington.

Franklin would like to see IDs checked at the entrances to pot 
stores, rather than at the point of sale.

Nordhorn said that's problematic because stores likely would have to 
hire staff just for that purpose. Instead, he said, he advises liquor 
stores to check right away the IDs of youthful customers.

Nordhorn wants the Legislature to establish criminal penalties for 
minors trying to buy legal pot, people using fake IDs to try to buy 
legal pot, and anyone manufacturing fake IDs for that purpose.

Now there are no penalties for teenagers who try to buy legal pot, he 
explained.

He'd like the offense to be a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor, and 
likewise for making or using fake IDs to buy pot.

Under liquor laws, it's a misdemeanor to use a fake ID and a gross 
misdemeanor to manufacture a bogus one.

The Liquor Control Board is asking the Legislature to formally 
authorize the use of minors in pot-buying stings with a new law.

But Nordhorn said legislative approval isn't mandatory, as the use of 
minors in such law enforcement has been established by courts. But he 
believes legislative action would be good policy.

"In the interest of public transparency, it's very important for us 
to showcase that this is something we're going to put out in front of 
folks so they can expect it."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom