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It’s hard to envy the college bars that are waging a constant war against underage drinkers trying to flout the law. Some of them will almost inevitably slip through the cracks, but one watering hole near Arizona State has some explaining to do after being raided by police who nabbed close to 250 people under the age of 21.
Operating a bar in a college town can be a very lucrative venture, but you’re also signing up for plenty of headaches when you primarily cater to students who are usually looking to get as drunk as possible as opposed to enjoying in moderation.
That reality means those establishments have to deal with their fair share of fights as well as plenty of vomit and other bodily fluids, and they also need to be on high alert for underage drinkers who are trying to hit the town before they’re legally able to do so.
The bouncers and bartenders at college bars are usually on high alert for people with fake IDs, but that does not seem to be the case at a spot in the vicinity of Arizona State that outdid itself after ending up at the center of its second massive raid this year.
249 people were cited for underage drinking at Tempe Tavern near Arizona State
Arizona State welcomed more than 160,000 students for the start of the current school year, and there is no shortage of bars near campus where students can flock to when they want to get their drink on.
Mill Avenue tends to be the main attraction, but there are plenty of other options if you’re willing to wander a bit. That includes Tempe Tavern, which made headlines in May after a social media post referred to a bust that led to 173 people being arrested for underage drinking as “Our 9/11.”
The bar was allowed to reopen after being cited for failing to do its due diligence, but it does not appear it learned its lesson based on what transpired last week.
According to AZ Central, dozens of members of the Tempe Police Department headed to the haven for underage drinkers on Thursday, November 20th, in a raid that led to 249 people being cited for being underage, having a fake ID, and providing false information after being detained (the vast majority were released, but three of them ended up in jail).
The Arizona Department of Liquor License and Control is conducting an investigation into the bar, and while it appears it is currently allowed to remain open, that may change depending on the sanctions that could be handed out.