I knew this was news here, but I didn't realize it was national news! Mamma Z in Dallas emailed it to me . . . it showed up as a headliner in her Yahoo News when she logged in to her computer.
Yes, that is the grocery store where MRM and I do most of our grocery shopping.
65-year-old gets carded in supermarket
Thu Sep 6, 4:01 PM ET
AP-Associated Press
FARMINGTON, Maine - A 65-year-old woman who went into a Farmington supermarket to buy wine was turned away because she didn't have an ID with her. But Barbara Skapa of Mount Vernon says that won't happen again.
"I'll be bringing my driver's license with me from now on," Skapa said.
She normally carries her license. But with her leg in a cast, Skapa was being driven by a friend when she went into the Hannaford Bros. market last week in and picked up several items, including a few bottles of wine.
The cashier told her it was policy to check for identification, said Skapa, who believes "no one would mistake me for 30 or even 40." Skapa asked if her friend could buy the wine for her, but that was disallowed too because it's considered "third-party" purchasing. Skapa asked to see the manager.
A spokeswoman for the supermarket chain, Rebecca Howes, said Hannaford's new policy is to check IDs of anyone who looks under 45 and wants to buy alcohol. The previous policy was to check for proof of age of those who look younger than 30.
The policy is not unlike those of many other Maine businesses and chains who want to stop minors from illegally buying alcoholic beverages and cigarettes.
In 2005, the state Legislature passed a law that requires identification from those who look under 27 years old before they can buy either.
The Big Apple chain's 90 stores in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont require clerks to require identification from anyone, regardless of age, who buys alcohol or tobacco. The strict policy went into effect after two Portland stores sold alcohol to minors in one night.
Earlier this year, some Portland establishments tightened their ID policies following an undercover sting of dozens of bars and convenience stores that led to 20 summonses for selling alcohol to underage customers. One restaurant, the Flatbread Co., told employees to card anyone ordering drinks who looks under 40.
A pilot program called Card ME was launched recently by the state Office of Substance Abuse and Maine's Higher Education Alcohol Prevention Partnership. It gives participating businesses educational guidebooks and material to help employees spot fake IDs.
Retrieved 9/9/2007 from http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070906/ap_on_fe_st/65_year_old_carded&printer=1;_ylt=A0WTUdJUpeRGPtwAhRYuQE4F
It's a pretty funny story and I love that it happened in Farmington where I now reside. But really, think about it, it could've happened anywhere. When you were in college, how good were you at judging people's ages? Anyone over 30 was ancient! How are you supposed to guess what 45 looks like? And many of the clerks in that store are college students. I've run into several of my students working there.
MRM said that she used to work in a grocery store and she just carded everyone no matter what because it was easier than trying to guess and the law says the clerk who sells alcohol to a minor is liable. She also told us that once you ask for an ID, you can't "take it back" and say, "Oh that's okay." So the manager, who may have been able to determine that the woman was not 45 or younger, could not dismiss it. Once asked, you have to produce ID or you can't buy.
Thanks for sending me the link, Mamma Z!!
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