Grothe Arrested For Serving Booze To Minor

[USF_Grouper]

According to Greg there was a bouncer at the door checking ID's. If it was an 18 and up crowd (even though they should have marked them) then Matt should be held accountable. It's the law.

If it was a 21 and up crowd and the bouncer let someone in underage then he should be held accountable.

Legally I am pretty sure bartenders are always responsible.  The markings used by the bouncers are more to discourage drink passing than anything else.  Either way, simple mistake, hopefully he learns.

[Bull94]

According to Greg there was a bouncer at the door checking ID's. If it was an 18 and up crowd (even though they should have marked them) then Matt should be held accountable. It's the law.

If it was a 21 and up crowd and the bouncer let someone in underage then he should be held accountable.

Legally I am pretty sure bartenders are always responsible.  The markings used by the bouncers are more to discourage drink passing than anything else.  Either way, simple mistake, hopefully he learns.

I'm sure you're right. Legally the bartender is responsible but if it was 21 and up then I think it should fall on the bouncer who let an underage kid in. I think markings are used all the time in busy places to determine who can and can't be served. They never card you at the bar if you can show a wristband.

[813knight]

I was a former NCAA athlete so as far as working goes, all athletes have to report to compliance to let them know if they're working and how much they are making. If they exceed the max amount allowed(if they have enough evidence) they could lose their eligibility. In Grothe's case there is probably not enough evidence or it could be covered up on how much he was making so his eligibility probably won't be affected.

The fact he didn't report to USF compliance about working there could cause some problems.

[Bobcat99]

Part of the problem here is that this isn't just any establishment. It's an establishment owned by a booster. To an external observer, it looks very similar to the Rhett Bomar situation.

[Joe]

No Bobcat,

Several NCAA athletes work for boosters. As long as close tabs are kept on how much they are making and how they are being paid it is ok.

[usfgrad84]

"When I bartended it was drilled in my head. Check the ID. If they have a wristband and look youn, check the ID. If I saw someone drinking who was not buying their own drinks and kind of being secretive about their drinking, I had to check their ID. Why? Because of the possible civil and criminal penalties that could be enforced against the bar and me. "

This is what I was asking.  It sounds to me that this place is run by inept management.  Do they even inform the bartenders of their responsibilities or since they seem on the verge of closing are they just not even paying attention?

[Sir Robert Peel]

not sure how you can turn this against MADD. It is a bartenders job to check the patrons i.d. If they didnt do these types of stings then bars would serve to every 18 yr old in the county with no fear of reprecussions. Until you form a lobby movement to change the legal drinking age to 18, it is 21. MADD is a great organization with a worthy cause.

MADD uses fear tactics to fiat laws on states. MADD is the reason the drinking age is 21. MADD is the reason the margin for DUI went from .15, to .12, to .10, to .08 in every state. MADD is singlehandedly ripping the rights of states to decide their own laws away from them.

I agree that fighting drunk driving is a good thing, but MADD uses tactics of federalism and fear to mandate laws to states, blackmailing them into passing absurd laws in order to keep their access to federal highway funding.

Wow.  You have some issues my friend.  Actually, the reason the DUI laws in the states dropped was because the children of those in MADD were being slaughtered by those with a .15 BAC, .12 BAC, .10 BAC, and .08 BAC.  MADD used thier RIGHT (as you seem to like to throw that word around) to lobby the legislatures and citizens of these states and people like YOU voted in support of those laws and leaders.  That is how is country works.  If you want the legal BAC back at .15 you should do what they did.  My feelings though are that you are with about 1 percent of this country.

[Bobcat99]

No Bobcat,

Several NCAA athletes work for boosters. As long as close tabs are kept on how much they are making and how they are being paid it is ok.

If Matt Grothe was hired to work there because he was Matt Grothe, USF quarterback, and not because he was an experienced, skilled bartender, that's an NCAA violation.

[Joe]

^^^ That would be true. Hard to prove though.

[Bobcat99]

A man who identified himself as a general manager at the Bull Ring but would not give his full name had "absolutely no comment" Friday. Asked how often Grothe worked there, he said "I have no idea."

The NCAA requires all employers of student-athletes to file an Employment Form in the Compliance Office of the institution. If he is the general manager, he would have been the one to fill out the form and thus would know exactly how often Grothe works there.

This whole thing is starting to stink.