California Department Of Alcoholic Beverage Control

A Long Beach police detective said Thursday that a $100,000 grant from the state will help police crack down on liquor stores that sell alcohol to minors. The grant from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control "will allow the Police Department to dedicate one officer, full time, to the enforcement" of state liquor laws, Detective Joel Cook said.

Johnny Grant, the longtime Hollywood showman and Tinseltown's unofficial mayor, has seen a lot of star antics over the decades. But from his penthouse apartment atop the trendy Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, Grant, 84, said he's not happy about what he's seeing today -- especially amid investigations focusing on underage starlets partying at Hollywood hot spots. "They're out of hand today," Grant said. "They used to be much more discreet. Studios used to control their images.

The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has revoked the liquor license of a Sun Valley bar because of illegal drug activity, authorities said Monday. The action was taken Friday against El Noa Noa bar at 7607 Vineland Ave. after investigators found drug activity there, said Lonnie Corley, supervising investigator. In February 1997, undercover officers from the Los Angeles Police Department found bar owner Javier Ramirez in possession of cocaine for sale, Corley said.

Authorities are trying to crack down on one of the worst-kept secrets in Hollywood: underage stars partying hard at trendy clubs on the Sunset Strip and Hollywood Boulevard. Doormen at Hollywood hot spots have been lifting the velvet rope for teen stars for years. Two decades ago, Drew Barrymore became tabloid fodder after being spotted drinking at Hollywood clubs when she was 13 and 14.

The Redondo Beach Police Department cited three businesses for allegedly selling alcohol to minors during an undercover operation, police said. Two teams from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control and the Police Department used underage decoys to check 25 establishment for illegal sales, said Officer Bob Remington of the Redondo Beach department.

After failing to receive a state grant earlier in the year, the Pomona Police Department went ahead with its initiatives to combat alcohol-related crimes. Now it has been rewarded. The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control announced Tuesday that the department received an $84,583 grant to reduce criminal activity at licensed locations. Police departments in Oxnard, Santa Rosa and the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Department also received grants.

California's former top alcohol regulator has taken a job advising lawyers for the industry he regulated until his retirement in August. Jerry Jolly, a 31-year veteran of the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, began work this week as a consultant to the wine, beer and spirits-industry practice of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, a San Francisco law firm with offices worldwide, including Sacramento.

California's prestigious wine trade is nervous about a crackdown on long-ignored industry practices that include providing abundant free samples for formal tastings at wine shops. Suppliers have routinely--and illegally, in some cases--furnished ample quantities of wines to shop owners for tastings, and "the ABC has looked the other way," said Randy Kemner, owner of Wine Country, a Signal Hill retailer. No longer.

Two items in the newspapers last week deserve to be read side by side. First, attorneys for Vertigo, the trendy downtown Los Angeles nightspot that openly discriminates against the attire-impaired, are appealing efforts by the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to force the club to admit nerds. Vertigo makes no bones about sorting the stodgy from the chic. A guy at the door eyeballs supplicants eager for entry and makes the decision based entirely on their clothes.

State auditors are looking into allegations that the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has engaged in "discriminatory enforcement" by stepping up raids on minority bars--particularly gay ones. The audit marks the latest round in a battle that began last fall between the ABC and factions of the gay, black and Latino communities after a dramatic increase in raids, primarily on gay bars and often during prime business hours.

California's former top alcohol regulator has taken a job advising lawyers for the industry he regulated until his retirement in August. Jerry Jolly, a 31-year veteran of the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, began work this week as a consultant to the wine, beer and spirits-industry practice of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, a San Francisco law firm with offices worldwide, including Sacramento.

The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control appointed a 49-year-old Redlands resident Tuesday to head the agency's Van Nuys District office. Timothy A. Clark was named the new administrator for the department's Van Nuys office. Clark replaces Dale Rasmussen, who recently left the agency to take a position with the Army. Agency interim director Manuel Espinoza said Clark will be a valuable addition to the Van Nuys office.

The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control on Tuesday appointed a 49-year-old Redlands resident to head the agency's local district office. Timothy A. Clark was named the new administrator for the department's Van Nuys office. Clark replaces Dale Rasmussen, who recently left the agency to take a position with the Army. Clark has been with the agency since 1988 after transferring from the California Department of Transportation.

Employees at 20 stores and restaurants in Westlake Village, Thousand Oaks and Newbury Park were cited during a police sting operation over the weekend for allegedly selling alcohol to minors, authorities said. Sheriff's deputies enlisted several 18- and 19-year-olds to attempt to purchase alcohol Friday and Saturday nights at about 100 businesses. Employees who sold alcohol to a minor were cited and released at the scene.

The Redondo Beach Police Department cited three businesses for allegedly selling alcohol to minors during an undercover operation, police said. Two teams from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control and the Police Department used underage decoys to check 25 establishment for illegal sales, said Officer Bob Remington of the Redondo Beach department.

The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has revoked the liquor license of a Sun Valley bar because of illegal drug activity, authorities said Monday. The action was taken Friday against El Noa Noa bar at 7607 Vineland Ave. after investigators found drug activity there, said Lonnie Corley, supervising investigator. In February 1997, undercover officers from the Los Angeles Police Department found bar owner Javier Ramirez in possession of cocaine for sale, Corley said.

Johnny Grant, the longtime Hollywood showman and Tinseltown's unofficial mayor, has seen a lot of star antics over the decades. But from his penthouse apartment atop the trendy Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, Grant, 84, said he's not happy about what he's seeing today -- especially amid investigations focusing on underage starlets partying at Hollywood hot spots. "They're out of hand today," Grant said. "They used to be much more discreet. Studios used to control their images.

Employees at 20 stores and restaurants in Westlake Village, Thousand Oaks and Newbury Park were cited during a police sting operation over the weekend for allegedly selling alcohol to minors, authorities said. Sheriff's deputies enlisted several 18- and 19-year-olds to attempt to purchase alcohol Friday and Saturday nights at about 100 businesses. Employees who sold alcohol to a minor were cited and released at the scene.

After failing to receive a state grant earlier in the year, the Pomona Police Department went ahead with its initiatives to combat alcohol-related crimes. Now it has been rewarded. The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control announced Tuesday that the department received an $84,583 grant to reduce criminal activity at licensed locations. Police departments in Oxnard, Santa Rosa and the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Department also received grants.

Tempers were running high Thursday in Hermosa Beach when business owners learned that they were not included in a meeting scheduled next week between state and city officials to discuss the city's problems with the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.