Subjective Law Enforcement

I'm all for very stiff penalties for people who drink and drive. However, I'm troubled by the police state subjective tactics that are gaining popularity:

While some citations are backed by evidence gleaned from DWI arrests or accident-scene investigations, most rely on the observations of SID agents and little or nothing else, according to a Tribune review of case files.

As the state puts increasing pressure on liquor sellers as part of a larger DWI crackdown, critics say that leaves the system open for abuse and places an impossible burden on bartenders.

"The concern that we have is that this is all very arbitrary," said Carol Wight, president of the New Mexico Restaurant Association. "We have concerns about the standards of evidence. We have concerns that certain establishments are being targeted. We have a lot of concerns."

Schwartz, a former Bernalillo County district attorney, said he's comfortable prosecuting the cases filed by SID, including the Sauce-Liquid Lounge-Raw case. He points out that many criminal cases are based solely on the word of police officers or victims.

This is a very slippery slope away from personal responsibility. I can't help but wonder if it's really just about generating money through punitive fines.

Just Doesn't Seem Just

Back in college, I worked for about eight weeks as a bartender to fill in for a friend of mine who was off making his student film. It was in the East Village in New York City, so it was an interesting experience to say the least. DWI was not a problem because just about everyone was walking or taking public transportation when they stumbled out of the bar in the wee hours of the morning - last call was close to 5:00 a.m.

Keeping that experience in mind, I find this to be very troubling:

The state began focusing on bars because studies show that about half the people arrested for drunk driving recently left a licensed liquor-serving establishment, Alcohol and Gaming Division director Gary Tomada said.

But often, citations are issued in cases that don't involve drunken driving or any other kind of illegal behavior by drinkers [emphasis added].

I strongly recommend you read the whole article in the link above. The gist of it is that:

1. no law was broken
2. the agents confirmed that the individual in question had a designated driver
3. the bartender is looking at up to a $1,000 fine, and/or a $2,000 legal bill

This is worth repeating, "no illegal behavior by the drinker occurred." Something is terribly wrong with the way that this playing out. There is absolutely no way for a bartender to determine that an individual who walked in off the street and ordered their first drink is already drunk.

These citations need to stop.