Fill out this form to email this article to a friend

Your name		Your email
Recipient email	You may enter up to 20 multiple email addresses, separated by commas.
Your message
Validation Code	Hear validation code
	Enter validation code

We were unable to send your email.

Click here to try again.

Keep it real, spring breakers

It's spring break, and cops are cracking down on fake IDs. But where are the crackdowns? What are the penalties?

By Susan Thurston, Times Staff Writer
In print: Friday, March 14, 2008

cutlines combo on the pic of guy checking IDs and the phony cards below.
	[credit]

Story Tools E-mail this story Contact the editor Print this story Comment on this story Social Bookmarking Digg Facebook Stumbleupon Reddit Del.icio.us Newsvine

ADVERTISEMENT [credit] cutlines combo on the pic of guy checking IDs and the phony cards below.

Keep it real, spring breakers.

That's the word from local cops, college administrators and bar owners concerned about fake IDs and underage drinking.

Vigilant year-round, authorities see the problem magnified during spring break, when students have time on their hands and partying on their minds.

Hillsborough Deputy Scott Sitton leads the Sheriff's Alcohol Vendors Enforcement program, known as S.A.V.E., which works with bar, restaurant and store managers to reduce underage drinking. About once a week, he camps out at nightspots looking for fraudulent, altered and borrowed IDs.

"You can go to any college campus, as a young person, and find the source of a fake identification pretty quickly,'' he said.

Last week, Sitton nabbed two 19-year-old University of Tampa students trying to get into the Dallas Bull on fake driver's licenses, a third-degree felony charge that carries up to five years in jail and a $5,000 fine. Two 17-year-olds were caught for trying to use someone else's ID, a lesser misdemeanor charge.

Jeremy McGreal, 30, was one of the bouncers on duty. He said the door staff gets about a dozen IDs on a busy night. Most of the time, the bouncers take the ID and order the person to leave. When authorities are present, violators using someone else's ID get a citation. Those trying to pass a fake ID get a trip to the Orient Road Jail.

McGreal knows what to look for. ID photos that don't look like the person. Heights that don't match. Nervous fidgeting in line.

"An older sibling can look the same, but there's always something different,'' he said. "I ask questions, and if they have to think about it for a second, I know it's not theirs.''

Last year, 325 people were booked into the Hillsborough jail on charges involving the unauthorized use or possession of a driver's license or fraudulent ID card. This year, there were 42 in January and February.

Generally, anyone who wants a fake ID can get one, probably for $100 or less. Several Web sites offer real-looking IDs from any state. Buyers are instructed to send cash to an address outside U.S. jurisdiction. In many cases, the seller is a student.

"I think everyone I knew under 21 used them,'' said Justin, a 22-year-old transfer student at UT, who didn't want his last name used for fear of getting into trouble. He recalled a guy at his old school who was busted for selling IDs out of his dorm room. He would take the students' photos, then send them away for processing.

School administrators work hard to fight it. In August, UT and the University of South Florida began requiring an online alcohol awareness class for all first-year and transfer students.

Still, college is still college, and consequences often seem improbable for many students enjoying their first time away from home, said police Sgt. Tom Bobrowski.

"You're going to reach some of the students, but not all,'' he said. "They are only going to listen as much as they want to. ... It's difficult to impress on them that this affects their lives after college.''

Contributing: Eric Smithers