§ 22-497. Selling or furnishing alcoholic liquor to person less than 21 years of age; failure to make diligent inquiry.

(a)

The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this section, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this subsection, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

Corrective action means action taken by a licensee or a clerk, agent, or employee of a licensee designed to prevent a minor from further possessing or consuming alcoholic liquor on the licensed premises. Corrective action includes, but is not limited to, contacting a law enforcement agency and ejecting the minor and any other person suspected of aiding and abetting the minor.

Diligent inquiry means a diligent good faith effort to determine the age of a person, which includes at least an examination of an official Michigan operator's or chauffeur's license, an official Michigan personal identification card, a military identification card, or any other bona fide picture identification which establishes the identity and age of the person.

(b)

Alcoholic liquor shall not be sold or furnished to a minor. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (c) of this section and subject to subsections (e), (f), and (g) of this section, a person who knowingly sells or furnishes alcoholic liquor to a minor, or who fails to make diligent inquiry as to whether the person is a minor, is guilty of a misdemeanor. A suitable sign describing the content of this section and the penalties for its violation shall be posted in a conspicuous place in each room where alcoholic liquor is sold. The signs shall be approved and furnished by the commission.

(c)

If a violation occurs in an establishment that is licensed by the state for consumption of alcoholic liquor on the licensed premises, a person who is a licensee or the clerk, agent, or employee of a licensee shall not be charged with a violation of subsection (b) of this section unless the licensee or the clerk, agent, or employee of the licensee knew or should have reasonably known with the exercise of due diligence that a person less than 21 years of age possessed or consumed alcoholic liquor on the licensed premises and the licensee or clerk, agent, or employee of the licensee failed to take immediate corrective action.

(d)

A licensee shall not be charged with a violation of subsection (a) of this section unless all of the following occur, if applicable:

(1)

Enforcement action is taken against the minor who purchased or attempted to purchase, consumed or attempted to consume, or possessed or attempted to possess alcoholic liquor.

(2)

Enforcement action is taken under this section against the person 21 years of age or older who is not the retail licensee or the retail licensee's clerk, agent, or employee who sold or furnished the alcoholic liquor to the minor.

(3)

Enforcement action under this section is taken against the clerk, agent, or employee who directly sold or furnished alcoholic liquor to the minor.

(e)

Subsection (d) of this section does not apply if the minor against whom enforcement action is taken under subsection (d) of this section, the clerk, agent, or employee of the licensee who directly sold or furnished alcoholic liquor to the minor, or the person 21 years of age or older who sold or furnished alcoholic liquor to the minor is not alive or is not present in this state at the time the licensee is charged. Subsection (d)(1) of this section does not apply under either of the following circumstances:

(1)

The violation of subsection (b) of this section is the result of an undercover operation in which the minor purchased or received alcoholic liquor under the direction of the person's employer and with the prior approval of the local prosecutor's office as part of an employer-sponsored internal enforcement action.

(2)

The violation of subsection (b) of this section is the result of an undercover operation in which the minor purchased or received alcoholic liquor under the direction of the state police, the state liquor control commission, or a local police agency as part of an enforcement action.

(f)

Any initial or contemporaneous purchase or receipt of alcoholic liquor by the minor under subsection (e)(1) or (2) of this section must have been under the direction of the state police, the state liquor control commission, or the local police agency and must have been part of the undercover operation.

(g)

If a minor participates in an undercover operation in which the minor is to purchase or receive alcoholic liquor under the supervision of a law enforcement agency, his parents or legal guardian shall consent to the participation if that person is less than 18 years of age.

(h)

In an action for the violation of this section, proof that the defendant or the defendant's agent or employee demanded and was shown, before furnishing alcoholic liquor to a minor, a motor vehicle operator's or chauffeur's license, a military identification card, or other bona fide documentary evidence of the age and identity of that person, shall be a defense to an action brought under this section.

(Code 1977, § 15-12(b); Ord. No. 22-A, § 1, 11-18-1971; Ord. No. 109, § 1, 4-28-1980; Ord. No. 219, 1-22-1996)

State law reference

Similar provisions, MCL 436.1701, 436.1705.