The Anderson County Sheriff’s Alcohol Enforcement Team, in conjunction with the South Carolina Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services’ (DAODAS) sixth annual “Out of Their Hands” campaign, conducted two operations on Friday night, April 17.
During the operations, a total of 33 compliance checks and 7 bar checks were completed. Four tickets were issued for the illegal sale of alcohol to a minor; three of the tickets were issued in Anderson County and one ticket was issued by the Williamston Police Department for a violation in their jurisdiction.
Employees at the following three Anderson County businesses were ticketed by Sheriff’s deputies last weekend:
Shell Station – 3808 Clemson Blvd., Anderson
Race Way Service Station – 3010 Highway 153, Piedmont
Little General – 3401 Highway 81 South, Anderson
A similar operation was conducted by the team last month, which brings the total number of compliance checks to 48 and the number of non-compliant businesses, so far this year, to eight.
According to DAODAS, alcohol is the most widely used substance among South Carolina’s youth. Young people who begin drinking before age 15 are four times more likely to develop alcohol dependence and are two and a half times more likely to become abusers of alcohol than those who begin drinking at age 21.
Underage drinking cost the citizens of South Carolina nearly one billion dollars in 2013. Youth violence (homicide, suicide, aggravated assault) and traffic crashes attributable to alcohol use by minors represented the largest percentage of that cost.
Sheriff John Skipper said, “The use of alcohol by our youth is a serious problem in this state. We will continue to conduct these operations, ticket violators, and educate business owners regarding the laws which govern the sale of alcohol. Another AET operation is scheduled to be conducted soon. We hope to see the ticket numbers drop at that time.”
