How would you of handled this ?

Question

Tonight, At my work (Im a stripper) I bought a 20 yr. old a beer, He looked 25, You have to show Picture ID to enter, The bouncers ck. as you enter. Well an under cover cop saw it grabed my arm pulled me in the back screamed at me nose to nose, I was saying YES SIR. and NO SIR trying to tell him I didnt know he was uder age, I thought he was over 21, He said he didnt care. Ive been charged with Unlawful Transaction with a minor, It sounlds so bad..He also said I might have to go to jail for 1 yr. He was so hateful and rude. (I really didnt know ! ) You cant enter if your NOT 21. I just want to know, Why was he so mean and will he be in court the day I have to go? and can he re yell at me? At one point I thought he was going to hit me. But he didnt. I left crying and Im still crying, I dont know what happened to the young guy.

The bouncer did come back there and said He had to show me a picture ID saying he was 21, The cop said "dumbass it has to be his picture ID " Johnny said it sure looked like him"

The owner came back after everone was gettin on him to do something he only said go home tonight your not feeling it...Come back tomorrow, You will be feeling better by then.

I bought him the drink because, I had not danced yet and I wanted to score some tips, It has worked in the past, Just not this time, The cop asked the guy for his ID and he pulled it out and showed him and he said "your 20 NOT 21" Those were the last words before getting me.

Answer 1

You have an excellent case. First of all, it's not your responsibility, it's the server of the drink, you only handed him a drink that was handed to you, so how could you be liable for that? Secondly, the DA only wants the owner and to give him a hefty fine or a minor charge. They don't want you, so don't plea to anything. Fight it until they drop it completely or give you a little violation/ticket type thing. They obviously went in there looking for more than a 20 year old drinking so they are not going to throw the book at you. Fight the case.

Answer 2

My first thought when reading your post is that you were set up. How did the undercover police officer know this guy was under age? And if he did know, why didn't he remove him from the premises before you had a chance to buy him a drink? But whether you knew or not, it's really not a defense. I know that's probably not what you want to hear, but the jails are full of guys who swear they didn't know a girl was underage too. I know that buying an underage guy a drink isn't the same as having sex with an underage person, but I'm just making a point. The law just doesn't care. Ignorance is no defense. The truth is, people are often charged with doing things they didn't know were illegal. If I were you I would relax, take some deep breaths, and consult a good attorney. Many of them will do a free consultation regarding your case. And, yes, the police officer who charged you will probably be in court when you go. I doubt that his demeanor will be the same though. I wouldn't worry about getting yelled at...he'll be on his best behavior for the judge. Good luck.

Answer 3

Why do I think there is something missing from this story? How did the undercover cop know the guy was only 20 and if he did know that before you bought him a drink, why didn't he get him out of there before that could have happened? Are you certain he was a cop? And you let him put his hands on you? A Set-Up? Sounds like it to me! You had no transaction with the guy first off...if we're talking about the beer you bought him anyway. The bouncer missed his I.D. and the bartender missed his opportunity to re-check it. He's the one who needs to be cited.

Let's see now...why was the big bad cop so mean, hateful, rude and awful to the innocent little stripper? Because he can be, get away with it and probably because he knows what you really do there! Strange that you bought the guy a drink and that you didn't allow him to buy you one! You're crying...why are you crying? You're a stripper, you know the deal! It must be awful being you and trying to be this naive! Will the big bad cop be there the day I go and can he be mean to me again? Give me a break!

Answer 4

umm, ok. How did the officer know how old the patron was? If the patron was allowed in, it is not your fault, however, what you thought is irrealevant. If you had any question about the patrons age, you should have asked for I.D. Now, If the establishment allowed this patron in, you are not responsible for letting him in, but you are responsible for serving alcohol to a minor, regardless of your thoughts.
I do not know why the officer was rude & hateful, perhaps, you just percieved it that way, or, perhaps, he was in a foul mood. Yes, he can yell at you. The few clubs i have been called to are loud, and one cannot converse in a normal tone and be heard. Yes, he will be in court the day you appear. Why would you think the officer was going to hit you? Were you combative? Again, what you thought is not relevant, only the facts. Crying will not make it better. I highly doubt you will get anything more than a fine, if that. The judge will be more interested in how the patron was allowed in, rather than you serving him a beer under the assumption he was of legal age. from here on out, always check for I.D. I myself find no reson to be hateful in this situation, sorry you had a bad experience.

Answer 5

If it goes to court yes he will most likely be there as a witness for the prosecutor. However if I were you I would get a lawyer, and haul in the bouncer that checked the id on this kid. Obviously the kid was a plant or the cop wouldn't have known he was under age. I would make sure your lawyer knows that it wasn't your personal job to ck id, that it was the bouncers job. What ever you do - do not go with a court appointed attorney you will lose your butt in court. Good Luck

Answer 6

I might have cried too. Or gotten really angry which certainly wouldn't have helped. You were totally set up, and one would logically assume that in a 21 up club that once someone is in they have already been carded but technically you needed to check i.d. too. You'll either get an attorney or have one appointed. Make sure you talk with that person and be sure they are really working for you. You should get off with a warning (and in the future ALWAYS check i.d. -- it's not sexy, but it's worth it to avoid this situation again).

As to whether the cop can get in your face and yell at you...pretty much yep. If he hit you and there were witnesses, then that would be illegal, but the yelling and disrespect is something he can do. Why he did it...ego issues. power issues. small member...some people just have to use what power they have to pick on people with less authority. Most people have no respect for people working in the sex industry and I'm sure that's something you're familiar with.
Take deep breaths. Don't worry about the young guy, chances are he was a plant. If not, I'd bet he left with a warning. Take care of yourself, try to relax.
peace.

Answer 7

If it goes to court, the officer and the 20 yr old would have to be there. There was no way for you to have reasonably known he was underage, so I don't think the prosecution has much of a case. In court, the judge should not allow him to scream at you. Given that your lawyer does not put you on the stand, you would not answer any questions. You should get the names of any witnesses who could help you. How did the officer know that the individual was a minor, by the way? You can also file a complaint with the police department about the officer's behavior. You can also ask for disclosure of the officer's notes on the incident.

Answer 8

The legalities of the situation are simply this; you are an employee and not legally required to maintain whatever laws regarding the "admission to" age. period. That responsibility falls completely, solely and totally on the owner(s), the management and whatever door I.D. check person (be it bouncer or what have you) period. You cannot be held legally responsible period. Personally, i would have gotten his name and asked for some identification and file a complaint against him for his behavior. There of course, will probably be some repercussions for that because police have become brazenly empowered to do whatever they want from shooting citizens armed or not and do not suffer any consequences for it whatsoever. What we need desperately is a change in leadership in this country. Old chinese proverb: "a fish stinks from the head down" You in the meantime keep your chin up and dont let anyone tell you otherwise because you're a stripper. I dont remember any strippers being caught in a multi-offender child abuse ring while protending to be some community leader (i.e., clergy)
P.S. You might have to get a lawyer because it sounds like the undercover asshole doesnt know the law he was assigned to enforce.

Answer 9

well some cops are known for treating us[citizens] wrong.i am way younger than you, a teenager you can say, but i have seen the way they treat people. On tv, even in my own eyes. If you are telling the truth, and saying the story the way it really went, you did nothing wrong, and you made a mistake. Clearly everyone does every once in a while. So if this is the honest truth then you really should have nothing to worry about. you made a mistake, your a human being. and you should be proven non guilty. hopefully everything works out for you. best of luck. and let me know how everything went.

Answer 10

well if your under the impression he was 21 because he should be to get in the court is not likely to go hard on you but your employeer needs to back up and comfirm the policy if the cop knew he was under 21 then it was a set up plain and simple makes me wonder what this nice boy got in return for doing it if the cop did know his age he and it wasnt a set up id be curious as to why he didnt have the door man remove him.