Tobacco Sting Finds no Faults

Source from:  By JULIAN AGUILAR, LAREDO MORNING TIMES 05/10/2008 05/12/2008

Three years ago, a grant from the Texas Comptroller's Office helped Webb County Pct. 3 Constable Annette Muñoz realize some disturbing news: The majority of the local convenience stores in her precinct were violating the law by selling tobacco products to minors."I took the grant in 2005, and I did a sting in Bruni, Mirando City, Aguilares and Oilton," she said. "Six out of the seven retailers failed." By "failing," Muñoz explained, the store vendors sold tobacco products to minors without asking for ID to verify the buyers' ages. Muñoz's grant, worth $2,000, is administered as part of the Texas Statewide Tobacco Education and Prevention program and helps local law enforcement agencies fund annual stings aimed at fining retailers who sell to underage buyers. Muñoz said her enforcement team consists of a minor decoy, usually a volunteer from an area school, and a few deputies to assist in the operation. The minor doesn't try to mislead the vendor, she said. There is no fake ID presented, and the minor must tell the truth if the vendor asks his or her age. One deputy drives the buyer, and another walks into the store separately to ensure the store is in compliance with current laws by displaying proper permits and warnings about selling age-restricted products to minors. After the initial 2005 sting, Muñoz said she held off on applying for a grant the following year because she wanted to do some outreach and let the vendors know what to expect in the future. "I said, 'I'm going to spend a year making sure these people know they are going to get a surprise sting again,' " she said. In 2007, there was improvement. Only two of the retailers failed. Last week, however, the best possible proof that Muñoz and her office's efforts were making a difference was finally achieved. A sting she conducted, with the help of deputies from Pct. 4 Constable Tino Juarez's office, found that all seven retail stores passed the tests and did not sell to any undercover decoys. The stores include Bruni Service Station, Bruni Country Store, Ornelas, Ramos Grocery Store, Triple Z's, The Little Bighorn Country Store and Garcia's Meat Market. The stores avoided the hefty $500 fine assessed to retailers who fail to comply, something Muñoz said is as important because the stores, which she describes as "mom-and-pop shops," do not make as big a profit as do the local retailers. "Most of these shops don't even make $500 a day," she said. They also received recognition from her office in the form of a certificate Muñoz said the storeowners display proudly. There is also an incentive for the decoys, she said. She buys them lunch and also provides them a letter of recognition and a reference that lets people know the participant was an integral part in helping keep tobacco products out of the hands of minors. According to a letter the comptroller's office sent to Muñoz, 90 percent of adult smokers began smoking as teenagers, and the efforts of law enforcement agencies to help curtail the sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products to minors help keep more than $135 million in federal funds in the state for alcohol and drug-treatment programs. Enditem