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Students might think it's funny to slip a fake ID past a store clerk when they're getting liquor for their buddies or themselves, but the courts aren't laughing.
The fines for using fake IDs rose for first- and second-time offenders Jan. 1, said Scott Miller, Butte County Superior Court administrative analyst. The fine for first-time offenders rose from $100 to $250, and the fine for second-time offenders rose from $250 to $500.
But the increased fine might not prevent people from using fakes, said Colleen Lazzarretto, records clerk at the Chico Police Department.
"We see a lot of disorderly conduct come through, but we don't get a lot of citations (for fake IDs)," she said. "We don't have a lot of people that report them."
Some stores just take IDs away and turn them into the DMV or destroy them, Lazzarretto said. Last year five people were cited for using fake IDs. No citations have been made this year.
Liquor Bank on Main Street confiscates and destroys fake IDs, said Victor Manuel Garcia Reyes, a shop employee of more than six years. Several people younger than 21 have tried to use fake IDs at the store.
"What happens is that they'll come in and say their is hair longer or shorter, but you know it's not them," Garcia Reyes said.
Employees try to card every customer, but occasionally someone slips by, and some of his co-workers have been fined for selling to a minor, he said.
A lot of fake ID cases aren't reported, said crime analyst Robert Woodward of the Chico Police Department.
But some people have been caught, including senior Megan Herek.
She was caught using someone else's license at Madison Bear Garden about two years ago, and the law came down hard on her, she said.
"I had my license taken away for a whole year," Herek said.
But an increased fine isn't likely to stop students from trying to use fake IDs, she said. Many people younger than 21 feel left out if their older friends go to bars, Herek said.
"I think that if people think that they won't get caught, they don't worry about what the consequences are or how much it costs," she said.
But people should watch out because using another person's ID could count as fraud - a more severe charge Herek faced, she said.
And store owners are getting good at spotting fakes.
Employees at Ray's Liquor, which used to have fake IDs posted inside the store, have seen a lot of failed attempts during the last six months, said employee Kevin Jaradah.
Many students try using fake IDs at Ray's but rarely succeed because it's easy to spot IDs that aren't legitimate, he said.
"Fake IDs don't have holograms, and we put black lights on all our IDs," Jaradah said.
It doesn't take long to inspect the IDs and figure out which ones are real and which ones aren't, he said.
Evan Burt can be reached at eburt@theorion.com
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