West Chester is pushing for more alcohol education

Sobriety checkpoints popped up throughout Pennsylvania the day before Thanksgiving to crack down on impaired drivers during the holiday, one of the biggest travel periods of the year.

During last year's Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's holidays, 1,072 of the crashes in the state involved a driver who was under the influence of alcohol or drugs, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

Thirty-five people died.

West Chester is working to make sure servers and sellers of alcohol know their responsibilities under the law during the holidays and throughout the year.

The borough has set a goal of getting every one of its 41 liquor licensees certified through the multistep Responsible Alcohol Management Program. The state Liquor Control Board offers the program as practical advice to help businesses follow the law.

"I would think that every establishment would want to have this certification," said West Chester Mayor Carolyn Comitta. "For the good of their business, for the good of their customers, for the good of the community."

The state House approved a bill this summer to make alcohol management training mandatory for anyone who sells or serves alcohol in Pennsylvania. The training is already mandatory for owners and managers of businesses with liquor licenses.

The bill, written by State Rep. Dave Hickernell (R., Lancaster), is pending before the state Senate. It was kick-started by the story of two young girls from Lancaster County who were killed when a woman crashed into their car seven years ago. Police said the woman was visibly intoxicated when a local establishment served her several drinks.

Selling alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person is against the law in Pennsylvania.

While the issue plays out in the General Assembly, West Chester is continuing to encourage businesses to become certified.

Twelve businesses in West Chester have gotten the certification, which must be renewed every two years.

In Philadelphia, 98 businesses were certified this year. The LCB program has trained about 2,300 people in Philadelphia so far this year.

West Chester's plan for full participation started several years ago when the borough established a neighborhood task force to identify ways to improve the quality of life in the West Chester University area, Comitta said. Borough officials sought to reduce the number of incidents fueled by alcohol, which make up most of the university area's "nuisance crimes."

The LCB program trains businesses to spot fake IDs that look increasingly real with developments in technology.

The board urges liquor licensees to take its training for protection against criminal fees and penalties or liability for the actions of visibly intoxicated patrons after they leave their establishments.

Other benefits include possible discounts on liquor liability insurance and possible reduction in penalties for serving alcohol to a minor or visibly intoxicated person - as long as the business complied with the law.

The Liquor Control Board also teaches some ways to prevent people from becoming intoxicated, including slowing down service when someone is ordering often, finding out how much coworkers' customers have had to drink before serving them more, and not stacking drinks at last call.

As the Pennsylvania Licensed Beverage Association says in its description of the training to those it represents, the program is "intended to train your servers to be responsible even when your clientele is not."