The "liar, liar, pants on fire" liquor bill being considered by Nebraska lawmakers is about to be turned on its head by its sponsor. State Sen. Bob Krist has prepared an amendment that would preserve the ability of authorities to enforce the law that requires liquor sellers to make sure those younger than 21 don't buy booze.
It's the right way to go.
The bill didn't read that way at first. The original version would have required the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth from kids working as police decoys in testing that bars and liquor retailers ask for a minor's identification.
The bill, which already has advanced to second-round debate, would have prohibited the decoys from fibbing if asked, "Are you over 21?" An underage youth helping police would have been required to say "no."
If law enforcement officers can't use minors who fudge a little, telling liquor sellers that they are of legal age when they aren't, how else can authorities make certain those sellers comply with the law? They can't, and that's what likely would have happened if Legislative Bill 60 were passed as originally written.
That's going after the wrong lie — the one being told by young people working with law enforcement rather than the lie told by kids seeking to buy beer for a party. If they are after liquor illegally, are they likely to balk at telling the truth to a store clerk?
But the amendment now being offered by Krist would forbid decoys from lying about their ages after they have been asked to produce identification.
Krist said this is a clarification needed in the law because some officers have supplied minors with false IDs indicating they were of legal age. That amounts to entrapment, he said. And if that's the case, then those agencies should revise their procedures to comply with the prudent practices spelled out in detailed enforcement guidelines by the Nebraska Highway Patrol.
Krist also has voiced worry that the decoy system encourages young people to lie. It's a sincere concern, but the kids who are helping authorities have the smarts to tell the difference between an effort to enforce the law and a lie told to subvert it.
Fighting lawbreakers with a fib in the course of a compliance check hardly seems unreasonable. Compliance checks aren't needed because they lead to arrests of law-abiding merchants. They're needed because they serve as a deterrent for the few who would break the law.
Krist said his proposed amendment represents a consensus among himself, the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission and the liquor industry.
Most retailers comply with the current law routinely. Checking an ID takes seconds — not much longer than asking a buyer's age — and there's little disagreement that denying liquor or beer to kids is a good idea.
There is a quick, safe and effective way for alcohol vendors to protect themselves from breaking the law while also protecting Nebraska kids — require a valid ID from anyone who looks like he or she might be too young.
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