KSHB 41 reporter Marlon Martinez covers Platte and Clay counties in Missouri. Share your story idea with Marlon.
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The Clay County Sheriff's Office has ramped up its efforts to curb underage drinking by cracking down on liquor stores selling alcohol to minors.
"We will do what we call Youth Alcohol Stance, where we take a youth and send him into a store with a plain-clothes deputy to observe them to see if they can accomplish purchasing alcohol when they’re underage," said Sgt. Ty Edwards, of the Clay County Sheriff's Office.
In a recent operation, the sheriff's office conducted undercover investigations at several local establishments, resulting in multiple citations to businesses found violating the law.
"We actually did two within two weeks on one night, and only one business sold. And on another night, seven businesses sold," Edwards said. "One day, we had a great turnout. The next time, it wasn’t the results we wanted, but we took the action necessary to curb that."
Edwards emphasized that the initiative is part of a broader effort to protect the community's youth from the dangers of underage drinking.
“Unfortunately, through my career, I've seen that situation of where we’re dealing with youth suffering from alcohol poisoning, or they’ve been stopped in a car and ended with a DUI, or worse, they’re involved in a crash after they’ve been consuming alcohol," Edwards said.
In Clay County from 2020-2022, 55 traffic crashes involved a minor under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
“We want to keep people safe, that’s the ultimate goal. We want our citizens to be safe, including the children," Edwards said.
The sheriff's office plans to continue its undercover operations and community education efforts in the coming months.
If you know or see an establishment selling to a minor, you are encouraged to report it by calling 816-474-TIPS.
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