Training Program

The southwest region of North Dakota is a rural, farming area. The largest city within the region is Dickinson with a population of 16,097. Many Montana residents attend Dickinson State University. The combination of two states' drivers licenses used for identification makes it difficult to detect false ID's unless the retailer is trained.

In 1993, the Dickinson Police Department cited 10 beverage retailers for allowing consumption on the premises and/or selling to minors. False identification is produced on college campuses (high-quality, computer-generated facsimiles of drivers licenses) for use in illegal beverage purchases.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The goal of the program was two-fold: to make it difficult for underage persons to buy alcohol and to send a heads-up to the beverage dealers to comply with the law. Objectives were carried out in four phases:

• Develop a training program for servers/sellers to identify false or altered licenses
• Conduct the training program for owners/managers and employees of the 26 licensed establishments in Dickinson
• Develop a plan with prosecutors giving stricter sanctions to those convicted of serving alcohol to minors
• Amend the city ordinance to mandate participation in the training as a requirement for license renewal.

STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES

The NHTSA training program, Card Tricks: Identification of False and Altered I.D.'s, was developed and implemented by a committee that includes a law enforcement officer, a state's attorney representative, a beverage retail owner and the traffic safety coordinator. Using this false identification course as a starting point, the North Dakota beverage retailer training program includes instruction on the laws and the two states' drivers licenses as well as hands-on work with actual false ID's and role-plays. There is a discussion of ways for beverage retailers and law enforcement to collaborate.

Each participant receives a manual containing a pre-test, the overhead slides, information on the laws and the two states' drivers licenses; an informational flyer on identification cards; a "Driver License Identification" book; the videotape Card Tricks - How to Spot Fake Identification; and supplemental information. They also receive a certificate of completion and a supply of register/window stickers that state "We've been trained to spot fake I.D.s."

RESULTS

Twenty-five employees from nine of the 26 establishments participated in the first seminar. The participants rated the seminar with a 4.73 on a scale of 1 to 5. The State's Attorney agreed that those retailers who met certain criteria (take the training, post signs, keep logs, and make a concerted effort to identify underage purchasers) would have lesser sentences if charged with having a minor on the premise.

City officials are discussing a plan to tie seminar participation to license renewal. This may be done over a two-year period, giving managers ample time to complete training.

Health coalitions and law enforcement agencies in surrounding counties are setting up seminars for retailers in their communities. The seminar will be held twice yearly in Dickinson and upon request within the region.

The impact of the seminar is currently being evaluated.