Extends dram shop liability to cover persons who sell forms of false identification to persons under 21 years of age who cause injury or damages while intoxicated or whose ability is impaired.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6656
SPONSOR: Crespo TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the general obligations law, in
relation to compensation for injury caused by the illegal sale of alco-
holic beverages to a person under the age of twenty-one years
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: Extends dram shop liability to cover
persons who knowingly sell numerous false identifications to persons
less than 21 years of age.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 adds a new paragraph (b) to section 11-100(1) of the General
Obligations Law providing that any third party injured as the result of
the intoxication or impairment of ability of any person under the age of
21 years shall have a right of action against any person or entity that
produced or sold more than ten false identifications to minors which
were used to obtain or procure alcoholic beverages that led to the
intoxication of the individual causing the injury. Under proposed
section 11-100 (1) (b), specific knowledge by the producer and seller of
the fake identification that the minor procured alcoholic beverages with
the identification is not necessary, as it is' reasonably expected that
when an identification is sold misrepresenting a minor's age, it could
be used for illegal purposes. Case law has interpreted previous appli-
cation of section 11-100 to require that the defendant had awareness of
and authorized the consumption of alcohol by minors. The new section
11-100 (1) (a) will still be applied in the same way. However, new
section 11-100 (1) (b) clarifies that there is no knowledge requirement.
Section 2 creates an affirmative defense for a seller of an identifica-
tion card which stated an age over twenty-one who h as scanned and
relied upon an apparent government identification card which stated that
the recipient was twenty-one or older.
JUSTIFICATION: Despite significant progress over the past 20 years,
underage drinking is a complex problem that persists in communities
across the nation. The battle to restrict access to alcohol by those
under the legal purchase age must be fought on many fronts, including
holding those who assist knowingly AND presumptively in the procurement
of alcoholic beverages to minors civilly liable. The Dram Shop Act
provides a cause of action against any person who unlawfully sells or
assists in procuring alcohol for an intoxicated person or a person under
the age of twenty-one. The sale of alcohol to any person visibly intoxi-
cated or any person under twenty-one is prohibited, as is knowingly
causing the intoxication of a person under twenty-one by furnishing or
assisting in the procurement of the alcoholic beverage. Forty-two
states and the District of Columbia have Dram Shop laws. Under New
York's General Obligations Law 11-100, one of the Dram Shop laws, if
someone is injured by an intoxicated minor, the injured victim has a
right to bring a lawsuit against the person who caused or contributed to
the intoxication of the minor by unlawfully selling to, or assisting in
the procuring of liquor for, the minor. In order to be held liable, the
procurer of the alcohol must have known, or had reasonable cause to
believe, that the person he was providing the alcoholic drink to was
under the age of 21.
It is only reasonable that the state extend responsibility for the
damages caused by underage intoxicants on those who profited from the
sale of the identification that enabled them to buy the alcohol. In
these cases, the producer and seller of the fake identification plays an
indispensable role in making the alcohol available to the under-aged
person. Until now, Courts have refused to hold the producer and/or sell-
er of the fake identification liable under Dram Shop laws.
In Etu v. Cumberland Farms, 148 A.D. 2d 821 (1989), the Third Department
held that the Spencer Gifts retail chain was not responsible when a 15
year-old boy purchased a do-it-yourself fake ID kit and used the ID he
made to purchase beer. After becoming intoxicated, he stole a car and
died in a one-car accident. The Court ruled that the company's behavior
did not meet the state's narrow definition of unlawfully furnishing or
assisting in procuring alcohol under the Dram Shop laws.
The proposed legislation would amend section 11-100 to provide a right
of action by an injured party against any person selling more than ten
false identification to minors which are subsequently used to obtain
alcohol. As the purveyors of false identifications are less proximate to
the incident, the ten identification threshold will ensure that only
those who clearly know of their wrong actions and have a high probabili-
ty of creating injury will be liable. It also creates an affirmative
defense for the sellers who honestly believe that the purchaser is over
the age of twenty-one by relying upon and scanning a government-issued
photo identification. This narrows the scope of liability and further
ensures that the law is targeted to those who know they are selling to
minors who intend to act unlawfully.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: A.10365/S.1025 of 2012. died in Judiciary;
2010-S.1871- Referred to Judiciary 2008-S.6528 - Referred to Judiciary
A2527 of 2013 died in judiciary.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None to the State.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect on the first of January
next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
