A shiny gold badge is discreetly flashed, and we're in. Virgil Weigel stands alone in a corner at Phoggy Dog, 2228 Iowa St. With his right arm resting on a table and his left hand on his hip, he watches the crowd with an authoritative face. Karen Price, his partner, patrols the bar like she owns the place. Within five minutes, Price approaches two tall, brown-haired, baby-faced, alcohol consuming males. She identifies herself and asks to see their IDs. They give her two fakes. She asks for the real thing. Taking a freshly poured plastic Bud Light pitcher and mixed drink from their possession, Price leads the minors outside.
"We're in Army ROTC," one male says. "I turn 21 in one month; he's in three months. If we get in trouble, we'll be kicked out of the program. Is there a possibility we won't get charged?"
"Not really," Price says.
Tonight is slower than usual. At 7:35 on a rainy Wednesday evening, Weigel drives around Lawrence in his navy blue minivan with tinted windows so dark they could be on Donald Trump's
limousine.He wears khakis,a gray jersey knit shirt and glasses.The only thing that gives him away is the Glock semi-automatic pistol that peels out from under his black jacket. He's somebody's grandfather, but if you're under 21,he may be your worst enemy.
Undercover, I cruised the town with him, scouting for alcohol-consuming youngsters. "It's not a big night, but then again, you never know," Weigel says. "It's hump night for a lot of people."
Alcoholic Beverage Control is part of the Kansas Department of Revenue. There are 20 ABC enforcement agents for the state and each is a certified law enforcement officer with statewidejurisdiction.The differenceis that their assignments primarily focus on alcohol laws."One of the biggest misconceptions I hear is the whole 'you guys aren't real cops' thing," Price says."We have total police power."
To check for minors violating the Liquor Control Act, ABC agents check bars and do exterior liquor store surveillance. They also do interior surveillance, such as acting as clerks to prevent liquor stores from accidentally selling to minors.
I feel like a stalker hanging out in the parking lot of the first of seven liquor stores we'll visit that night, but Weigel has been doing this for 21 years. We watch customers come and go, carefully observing every car that pulls up. Weigel cracks his dark window just enough to see each face clearly. Later, as "Jack and Diane" plays over the radio, a small blonde girl gets out of a black Lexus, runs inside. "Oh yeah, she's young. She's never gonna make it." Price says.
Because of the rain, we couldn't see if she was carrying alcohol when she exited the store.This one got away.
A computer randomly selects liquor licensees from around the state for visits. Some places show up every time, some never show up, Price says. They also select places with prior complaints or where they know there's a problem, she says.
When the ABC is in town, rumors circulate and phones start ringing. An agent could be in town on any given night, but it depends on what events are going on. At big football games like KU versus K-State, there could be two or three
agents at the game, Weigel says."We try to go to as many places as we can. We don't target just one or two bars."
I ask Weigel if he would approach me at a bar. He chuckles."That depends,"he says. It depends on if you look young, how you behave and who you are with."We have a large idea of what we are looking for."
Katie, Wichita junior, was caught at a bar when she was 20. A Lawrence Police Officer wrote her a ticket for possessing a fake ID while drinking water at Quinton's Bar and Deli, 615 Massachusetts St. Then, the officer told her she could reenter the bar in 15 minutes — at midnight on her 21st birthday.
Ankita Trivedi, Olathe junior, works the door at Liquid, 806 W. 24th St. ABC officers visit the bar once every couple of weeks and they blend in well, she says."The actual officers just look like adults coming into the bar to drink."
When a minor gets busted, the ABC fills out an informational report that is submitted to the city prosecutor's office. "Once we've submitted it, it's out of our hands," Weigel says. "Ultimately, it's up to the city if they prosecute
or not." About 95 percent are
prosecuted, he says.
The minor in possession statute includes the attempt to purchase and the attempt to possess alcohol. If you walk up to the liquor store counter, you can get in trouble, Welgel says. However, in a bar, you have to be in possession of alcohol to be confronted by an ABC officer. You can set your drink down to avoid the cops, but if the agent saw you in possession before you set it down, you're more screwed than your screwdriver. You could be five years old in a bar because there's not a state law that says you have to have an ID to be in a bar, Price says. This rule is created by Individual establishments.
Jose Terrazas makes deliveries for Cork & Barrel Wine and Spirits, 2000 W. 23rd St, and thinks the store is unfairly targeted by the ABC. He rarely sees ABC agents inside the store, but they're pretty-sneaky about it, he says. But the liquor clerks aren't necessarily on your side either. Cork and Barrel employees get paid about $20 for every fake ID they confiscate.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION/MICHELLE GRITTMAN Kansas's Alcoholic Beverage Control has 20 enforcement agents for the state. The ABC visits local bars and liquor stores, enforcing the Liquor Control Act.
Weigel doesn't consider himself a bad guy. He's doing his job to prevent people who are underage from drinking, driving and killing someone out on the highway, he says."I don't consider that a bad thing."
Price thinks her job is important, but she doesn't like it when people get upset. In some sense, underage drinking causes a lot of problems in Lawrence, she says. People younger than 21 know what the law is and they know what will happen if they get caught. It's just like speeding or any other violation.
You won't see an ABC agent drinking on the job, but they can skip the bar lines and the cover charge. If you like watching people and their oddities, it's a great job, Price says.
Price and Weigel give the same advice to minors out there eagerly awaiting that monumental day of freedom: "Don't drink until you're 21."
11. 09.2006 JAYPLAY <07