In a crackdown on underage drinking, the San Jose Police Department, in collaboration with agents from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), have nabbed three individuals accused of buying booze for the underaged during an operation dubbed the "Shoulder Tap."

The sting, which unfolded on January 9th, placed minors under police supervision outside liquors and convenience stores, where they asked patrons to purchase alcohol for them while clearly stating their age as below the legal drinking limit, despite this straightforward strategy it has led to arrests, with adults who agreed to buy the alcohol for minors getting slapped with a minimum $1,000 fine and mandatory 24 hours of community service according to the SJPD.

“We conduct these operations to keep alcohol out of the hands of our youth”, said ABC Director Joseph McCullough, "By preventing underage drinking we can increase the quality of life in our communities and reduce DUIs," as reported in a recent SJPD statement.

With the NHTSA reporting that roughly 25% of fatal crashes involve underage drinking, the stakes are high— and initiatives like the ABC Alcohol Policing Partnership (APP) program, which funded the operation, aims to combat this trend, although critics question the effectiveness and underlying implications of such enforcement tactics, proponents argue they're a necessary evil to prevent sobering statistics from rising.

San Jose Police Department encourages the community to report any crime tips anonymously through the P3TIPS mobile app, by phoning the tip line at (408) 947-STOP, or by visiting www.siliconvalleycrimestoppers.org, with the potential sweetener that tipsters leading to an arrest may receive a cash reward courtesy of the Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers Program.