Rothenburger — 67, and still asked for ID at the beer garden

COLUMN — Donna Martin looks young for her age but it’s been a long time since she was asked for photo ID to have a drink.

That’s what happened on Canada Day at the beer garden in Riverside Park. When she couldn’t produce the ID, she was refused entry. She’s 67.

“That was funny,” she said Friday. Martin, a well-known Kamloops yoga instructor, said the security guy’s explanation was that if he asked anybody for ID, he had to ask everybody, so there were no exceptions.

Her friend Joan Rathbone took it more seriously than Martin. “It was so ludicrous,” she said. “We just all turned away. It was just silly.

“They said it’s because it’s discrimination against young people” if everyone isn’t required to produce ID. The security employee said the directions came from the police, Rathbone said.

Martin, Rathbone and Steve Quinney decided to go to the Noble Pig instead. On their way out, Rathbone stopped at the RCMP booth and asked them if they’d ordered the ID check. They said no. So, the trio continued on their way.

“It just sort of left a bad taste, because most laws are kind of based on common sense,” Rathbone said.

Maybe that’s debatable but the situation is interesting since the Liberal government has been unveiling liquor law reform with considerable fanfare the past few weeks.

One of those new laws is that people who buy a cold one at a beer garden don’t have to be fenced into a compound unless it’s for public safety reasons. It’s up to the event organizers.

Attorney General Suzanne Anton described the new rules last month as “family friendly.”

“Our government promised to modernize B.C.’s liquor laws — increasing convenience, selection and choice for consumers, while keeping public safety top of mind — and we are delivering on that promise.”

But since when does somebody in their 60s have to show photo ID to get into a beer garden? Multicultural society president Ray Dhaliwal — whose team did such a great job of organizing Canada Day — was approached by another couple, in their 70s, who said they, too, had been denied entry into the beer garden because they lacked ID.

When he checked into it, he said, the security company looking after the beer garden told him it had been instructed there were to be no exceptions on ID.

A spokesperson for Bighorn Security confirmed it for me. Both the RCMP and liquor inspector Jeff Humm were onsite and the understanding was that photo ID was required from everyone, she told me.

When I called Humm, he referred me to a Justice Ministry number because local government officials aren’t allowed to talk to the media. That’s the way it is under the B.C. Liberal government.

So, at the Justice Ministry, I was asked by a communications officer to put my request for an explanation in writing. That’s also the way it is with the current government — they like to do interviews by e-mail.

I asked this:

“1. what is the law around the requirement for ID at licensed beer gardens?

“2. is there any discretion on enforcement regarding provision of ID? i.e. must it be strictly enforced or would Security be allowed discretion.

“3. what is the reason for the law? Is it to enforce legal drinking age, or for timely identification in case of an incident, or some other reason(s).”

I also explained the background to the questions and who I’d already talked to. I asked for a response by 5 p.m.

One thing I’ll admit, government communications officers take deadlines seriously. At 4:12, the following answer came back in response to questions one and two:

“It is against the law to sell liquor to a minor, and organizers are responsible for ensuring minors are not served liquor at the event.

“If there is any uncertainty about a person’s age, staff are required to check ID, and in that case, they must ask for two pieces of ID in order to verify the person is at least 19 years of age.

“One piece must be government-issued and include a photo and date of birth (such as a driver’s licence). The other must include a name and signature or picture (such as a credit card).

“In some cases, organizers may decide to ID everyone in order to minimize risk. However, this is not a Liquor Control and Licensing Branch requirement.”

The answer to question three was, “These laws are in place to prevent the sale of liquor to minors.”

So, who ordered that everybody’s ID must be checked no matter what? It wasn’t the multicultural society, and the security company says it was following directions.

Somewhere along the line, common sense, as Rathbone says, went by the wayside. It sounds as though B.C.’s liquor laws still have some distance to go before they can truly be called “reformed.”

armchairmayor@gmail.com