Sheriff department sting liquor retailers.

Carson City liquor retailers looking for a quick sale to underage drinkers could have a rude awakening, thanks to a federally funded sting operation.

Carson City sheriff's deputies and volunteers over 21 years old have already visited all 36 liquor stores in Carson City.

Thirteen of the shops sold to them without checking identification, the volunteers reported.

The department plans to take the information and send a letter to merchants informing them of how they performed during the undercover buys, said Chief Sheriff's Deputy Scott Burau.

Two more phases of the operation include a letter campaign to targeted stores and attempts by underage buyers to purchase alcohol.

It is unlikely that citations will be handed out during the operation, but a list of stores that don't comply will be made available to the Liquor and Entertainment Board on which Sheriff Rod Banister sits.

"We have zero tolerance for alcohol sales to minors in the community," he said. "With the volunteers, it will be ridiculous if you can't see this coming through the door."

The first round of undercover buys took two nights. It involved three deputies and two volunteers. Burau said that although selling to the young adults is legal, where there is any doubt identification should be checked.

After clerks receive evaluations, younger volunteers - around 19 years old - will go into the same stores within the next few weeks and try to buy alcohol again.

The law requires that clerks, but not necessarily the business owners, are cited in the illegal sales. A ticket for selling alcohol to a minor can carry a $600 fine.

"These are healthy citations and business owners don't bear the brunt except in front of the liquor board," Burau said.

Burau said when the department has done similar operations in the past, illegal sales have not been predictable.

"Some grocery stores, some liquor stores - it's tough to say who the violators are."

Any alcohol purchased during the sting will be destroyed, Burau said, to eliminate the appearance of impropriety. Underage buyers collect receipts for accounting purposes, he said.

Burau's message to liquor retailers: "Anytime you see a young adult come to the counter the light should go off and you should say, 'Where's your I.D.?'"