Sandy Burr Country Club Put on Liquor License Probation

is under a one-year liquor license probation period, though selectmen commended a bartender for contacting police in the situation that eventually led to this liquor law violation.

Wayland Police Chief Bob Irving and Sandy Burr President and General Manager Ken Munsey appeared before the Wayland Board of Selectmen Monday night for a liquor license violation hearing.

Irving said that on Sept. 23, Angel Vazquez, the clubhouse manager and bartender at Sandy Burr, called Wayland Police to report a disturbance. Vazquez reported that three men whom he’d kicked out of the club and off the property after serving them three beers were banging on the door and being “loud and rowdy.”

When Officer Chris Hanlon arrived, he found the three men outside. They all claimed to be Boston College students who had been at Sandy Burr that day for a tournament. They said they were waiting on a ride, and Hanlon reported they did not appear intoxicated or obnoxious any longer.

Hanlon checked the IDs of the men and found the birthdates to be in ’91, ’91 and ’92, meaning none of the men were yet 21. When Hanlon questioned Vazquez about the birthdates and the fact he’d served them three beers, Vazquez said one of the men showed him an ID with a birth date in 1990. Vazquez said he sold the three beers to that individual and the individual than distributed the beers to the other two.

The men, however, said they never showed Vazquez an ID with a birth date in 1990.

“Usually when we have these cases … it’s the result of a compliance check and we know exactly what has happened,” Irving told selectmen, saying those twice yearly compliance checks are designed to “test” the vendors. “In this case, there is a dispute between what the bartender said had happened and what the three boys said.”

Regardless of whether an ID bearing a 1990 birth date was shown, Vazquez committed a violation by serving three beers to one individual without checking the IDs of the other two.

“It’s certainly a violation in that, when you’re a server, you have to check the ID of all people that receive alcoholic beverages,” Irving said. “We’re assuming, even if there was a false ID, a violation still occurred.”

Munsey said that Vazquez has worked for Sandy Burr since, he thought, 2001. In that time, the clubhouse manager has shown himself to be conscientious, Munsey said.

“If anything, he’s always been very, very good about checking IDs and making sure everything is done right,” said Munsey, adding that Sandy Burr has never had a liquor violation.

In addition to serving alcohol to an underage individual, Vazquez’s alcohol serving certification had lapsed. The certification is required of all individuals who serve alcohol in Wayland.

Munsey said Vazquez had, at the time of this incident, completed the training for recertification, but became busy with his job as a manager and failed to take the final test of the recertification process. He has since completed that test and is once again fully certified.

“There was no attempt, in my mind, from Mr. Munsey to hide or come up with any excuses for what happened,” Irving told selectmen. “It’s my belief that this situation is something that I would find highly unlikely to happen again.”

Selectmen Sue Pope questioned if, given that Vazquez contacted police himself, a one-year probation period might be “too strong a penalty for a country club that has never had a problem before.”

Tom Fay, Board of Selectmen chair, also complimented Vazquez’s quick action in contacting police.

“The last thing we need in town is for liquor establishments to hesitate to call police,” Fay said. “I compliment that bartender. I appreciate Mr. Munsey your straightforward view of the facts.”

Irving agreed Vazquez’s calling the police was commendable, but also said he recommended handling this situation the same as any other violation in town.

“When we treat these cases differently, we sometimes open ourselves up to disparity,” Irving said. “The fact is he did serve alcohol to an underage youth. I’m certain Sandy Burr will take the probation to heart and do an excellent job.”

The probation period runs from Nov. 8, 2011-Nov. 8, 2012. During that time, if any liquor violation occurs, Sandy Burr will immediately lose its liquor license for five days for each violation. In addition, Sandy Burr must provide Irving with a current list of servers as well as proof of their alcohol training certifications. Within 60 days of hiring a new server, that server’s proof of certification must be provided to the chief.