APD Chief Nick Magruder says underage drinking has always been the biggest issue in the uptown area, but it’s not a new trend. Since the beginning of the fall semester, APD has charged 42 individuals with underage offenses.
“We’re seeing a lot more underage offenses in the bars,” Magruder said. “We’re also seeing a lot more fake IDs and people with multiple fake IDs.”
Most of the issues that occur uptown from drinking come from people under the age of 21.
“The biggest thing we see is a lot of the fights and assaults, and the highly intoxicated people we’re seeing are underage people that are going into bars and maybe have no experience with drinking, and also just kind of haven’t really got their feel for how to control themselves as well,” Magruder said.
With the increase of new students and freshmen at the start of each school year, officers take a more firm stance while patrolling, AJ Spear, APD Lieutenant, said.
Spear said there are multiple things officers look for when determining if someone is underage, such as body language or discerning behaviors, like walking the other way after noticing cops coming in.
“The one thing we don’t do is that we’re not going in there and say, ‘That person looks young,’” Magruder said.
Bar checks not only help with underage issues, but also with overcrowding problems, Spear said.
He also said there could always be a case where something bad happens and people can’t get out, so APD works with the Athens Fire Department on occupancy.
Oftentimes, when APD enters a bar for a bar check, many students walk out, which helps weed out underage people and overcrowding issues.
Bennett Snyder, a senior studying journalism and manager at Broney’s, located at 7 W. Carpenter St., said he’s noticed an increase in police presence this semester.
Snyder said he’s seen a couple of people get arrested in Broney’s, but the fines or offenses haven’t been too severe.
“Normally, they don’t really have to kick people out,” Synder said. “I think that’s pretty typical at most bars when there are underage people at a bar and (they) see cops walk in; they’re normally like, ‘How fast can I get out of this door or out of this bar?’”
With the past two freshmen classes coming to OU being its largest ever, instances with underage drinking are bound to happen, Snyder said.
Magruder said APD doesn’t target any specific bars, and they try to ensure to focus on each one.
The amount of patrol also depends on what weekend it is or how busy it’s anticipated to be.
With Homecoming this weekend, Magruder said there will be extra staff on hand, but it’s similar to how they handle all big weekends.
Spear said he expects to see more intoxes, a term that refers to passed out people or people unable to take care of themselves. With the older crowd of alums coming into town, APD doesn’t expect the amount of fights to rise since they stem mainly from individuals under the age of 21.
During the fall semester, Spear said he had to charge someone with an underage offense.
“They were causing an issue, which then caused me to get involved in the situation,” Spear said. “When I got involved, then I determined that they were underage and that they were intoxicated, and that’s when I pursued the charge.”
Typically, officers can decide if they want to charge an individual with the issue they were causing or cite them for underage. For example, if someone has an open container and the officer then finds out the individual is underage, the officer may pursue an underage ticket instead, Spear said.
Getting an underage citation allows the individual to enter a court ordered diversion program whereas a different charge can stay permanent on one’s record.
“I know that it’s probably going to sound extremely biased, but coming from a college student and then working for the police department here – knowing what I know now – I would’ve felt lucky to have this police department,” Spear said. “The guys who work here genuinely want to help people, and sometimes, that means charging people.”