Underage Drinkers Targeted at Border

Inside Club A, disco lights illuminate the faces of hundreds of dancers. The music is loud--so loud it reverberates miles away.

Outside, about 60 people impatiently wait in line to pay a $5 all-you-can-drink cover charge. They yell and scream as 20 revelers brawl.

It’s a typical Wednesday night, better known as “college night,” on Avenida Revolucion, a street in downtown Tijuana with more than 30 bars. Minors cross the border midweek to enjoy specials--waived cover charges, free tequila shots, 85-cent beers and endless hours of fun.

“I’ve had five drinks in the last hour,” said Rick McCrary, 20. “I’m the designated driver.”

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Back in the United States, five miles from the international border, units from the San Diego Police Department’s DUI Enforcement Squad set up a checkpoint at 1:30 a.m. to catch the Tijuana revelers on their way back.

“A lot of kids get loaded on Wednesday nights in TJ,” said Sgt. Bill Snyder, who is in charge of the operation. “They cause a lot of problems.”

In fact, police claim their crackdown has not only reduced drunken driving but also crime--such as theft and stabbings--by underage drinkers.

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The bars of Tijuana are irresistible to the young. Bouncers pass out fliers promoting their drink specials during their peak party hours of midnight to 3 a.m. They follow “under 21” barhoppers up and down the streets, urging them to stop in and enjoy the deals.

The legal drinking age in California is 21; in Mexico, it’s 18. Club A bouncers check ID cards carefully to screen out those who are under age, said Abraham Garcia, security guard at the bar.

But three high school girls from Chula Vista, who come to Tijuana at least weekly, said it is easy to get into the bars with a good fake ID.

Many of the under-21 drivers park at the border, cross and drink, and then return to pick up their cars. The crackdown works this way:

A police “spotter” is deployed to the parking lot exit in San Diego. The spotter looks for violations such as a broken tail light or a missing license plate.

Using a radio, the spotter informs officers, who stop the cars for violations--and simultaneously check for drunken drivers, Snyder said.

“They don’t expect us to be around the corner,” he said.

Between March and early June, the department had impounded 90 cars and arrested 66 people for driving under the influence.

Under state law, police can impound the cars and suspend the licenses of underage drinkers who drive with a blood-alcohol concentration of .01% or more, because it is illegal for them to consume any alcohol.

There are no criminal charges involved, but the administrative process of getting a car and license back can be expensive--anywhere from $100 to $300.

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Underage drinkers can be arrested for DUI if they have a blood alcohol level of .05% or more.

All this surprised Sasha, 19, who was pulled over at 3 a.m. for failure to have a rear license plate light. The car she was driving, which was impounded, belonged to her friend Nicole, 21, who sat in the back seat with boyfriend Jason Mato.

The trio had spent $55 at the Tijuana bars and had no money to return to their homes in Carlsbad, 55 miles north, Nicole said.