State Grant to Expand Alcohol Enforcement
The Los Angeles City Council accepted a $100,000 grant this week that will pave the way for the citywide expansion of a highly touted alcohol enforcement program.
The grant, the second received by the city from the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control in two years, will pay for an additional police sergeant to help coordinate the program, dubbed Operation ABC.
Launched in January 1996, Operation ABC combines local, state and federal resources to crack down on a variety of alcohol-related problems in areas that have a high concentration of liquor outlets. Until now, the program has employed one sergeant who operated exclusively out of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Foothill and 77th Street divisions.
In February, before the state grant was awarded, the council approved $100,000 in city money to continue the program for another year.
“This is a unique program that has reduced illegal liquor sales to minors, closed down problem bars and made communities safer,” said Councilman Richard Alarcon, who introduced the motion to hire the additional sergeant. “It’s exciting to watch a successful program expand and get so much support from the City Council and community.”
In its first 18 months, Operation ABC participated in several high-profile bar closures in the northeast Valley. The program has also reduced drunk driving and led to more than 1,000 arrests and $4 million in fines, Alarcon said.
The latest grant from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control will fund Operation ABC through June 30, 1998.
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