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Dec 02, 2023

Alcohol sales: Is it OK to have your kids in tow?

LAFAYETTE, Ind.— This is a cautionary tale, and a bit of a mystery, for any

LAFAYETTE, Ind.— This is a cautionary tale, and a bit of a mystery, for any parents who grocery shop with their teenage children.

This story came about after J&C news director Carol Bangert was denied the purchase of a bottle of wine while grocery shopping with her 18-year-old daughter, because her daughter did not have ID. The question: How do alcohol sales work with children who are under the legal age of consumption in tow?

To find an answer I borrowed Bangert's daughter, Olivia, for an evening of grocery shopping spread across several stores in Tippecanoe County with the end goal of seeing if she would get carded as well when present for the purchase of alcohol. If she was carded and I was denied the purchase, I would leave the alcohol and continue with my grocery purchases.

The first stop on the trip was the West Lafayette Meijer, located at 2636 U.S. 52, and after selecting my bottle of wine and grabbing a few nonperishable items, Olivia and I headed to the check out.

At each store, I opted for the traditional checkout lines rather then the "you scan" to ensure interaction with a cashier. After placing all of my items on the conveyor belt, with Olivia's help, I placed the bottle of wine last and waited for the time to show my driver's license.

After checking my ID, the cashier did not ask to see Olivia's. According to a manager for the West Lafayette Meijer, the store's policy is if the employee completing the sale feels the purchase may be intended for that minor, then they are not to sell.

The next destination for our outing was the Greenbush Street Pay Less, where Bangert initially found issue with purchasing alcohol. We walked in and gathered more grocery items off of my list and another bottle of wine.

Olivia and I greeted the cashier, placing the items onto the conveyor belt; I placed the bottle of wine again at the end. The cashier checked my ID, but did not ask to see Olivia's.

When asked what the store's policy was on carding for alcohol sales, a store manager for the Greenbush Pay Less declined to comment, directing inquiries to Kroger's corporate office. Request for comment from Kroger media representatives was not returned.

The final destination for the evening was Target, where we gathered up my produce purchases and final bottle of wine. As we chatted with the cashier, she checked my ID and, like all of the rest, did not ask to see Olivia's.

A manager for the local Target said the store's policy was "a little different" than most area grocery stores in that only the purchaser is to be carded when alcohol is present.

Although we didn't make it to Walmart in time, it didn't sound like I would get far with a fourth bottle of wine there.

A manager for the Walmart located at 4205 Commerce Dr. said the store follows an "ID 40" policy, meaning anyone who looks to be under the age of 40 must show an ID when in the presence of an alcohol purchase, which lines up with Indiana state law.

"Indiana law requires permittees and their employees to check identification of any person under the age of 40 when conducting carryout sales," according to the Indiana State Excise Police website. "While there is no similar ID requirement law for on-premise consumption, the Excise Police encourage requiring identification from anyone appearing under 26 years of age when making sales for on-premise consumption."

But what does that mean for parents shopping with teenage children?

Lindsay Devlin, communications director for the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission, said although the law states it is a Class B misdemeanor for a permittee to sell alcohol to a person without checking their ID if the purchaser appears to be under the age of 40, grocery shopping is an exception.

"Grocery stores and drug stores are exempt from the prohibition of minors in public places where alcoholic beverages are sold," Devlin said. "There is nothing set out in statute that prohibits the sale of alcohol to a persons over 21 who has their minor child with them at a grocery or drug store."

But that doesn't mean a store can't implement policies that ensure no minors are present at the point of sale, she said.

"Indiana Code Title 7.1 sets statutory requirements relating to the production of identification to ensure there are no alcohol sales to minors," Devlin said. "Those statutes do not prohibit individual permit holders from implementing more strict requirements than are required by law."

In addition to grocery stores, exceptions to the law of ID'ing anyone under the appearance of 40 years of age include sports arenas, boats, bowling centers, private catering halls, indoor golf facilities and several other businesses that hold specific liquor licenses.

Devlin said District 3 Excise Police haven't received any complaints regarding the inability to purchase alcohol with minor dependents present, but whether or not the denial of a sale stands as a grocery shopping hurdle or not falls back onto the store's individual policies.

"It is a violation to sell to a minor, there is no denying that," she said. "But I guess in the long run it is better for employees to be cautious than not."

Reach reporter Jillian Ellison at 765-420-5228 or at [email protected].