Government Grant Results in Alcohol-Related Arrests

A grant issued to the Newport Beach Police Department by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control resulted in arrests and citations at some alcohol establishments in the city, a police official announced today.

Newport Beach police were awarded the $26,318 grant from ABC in July 2010 to address alcohol-related issues in the city. Kathy Lowe, the police department's crime prevention specialist, said the grant allowed for the department to place uniformed police officers and plain-clothes detectives in retail alcohol establishments to address problems of employees serving patrons who show signs of intoxication, service and sales to minors, over-occupancy, patrons using fake identification cards and city use permit violations.

The grant period ended on June 30 and resulted in two arrests and 23 issued citations related to various alcohol-related offenses, Lowe said. In addition to the increased enforcement, the grant also made it possible for the police department to host two Responsible Beverage Training sessions to help educate retail alcohol establishment owners and employees about important laws and issues.