The Fake ID Rite of Passage: Students, Bars, and the Risks Behind It

Patrons line up outside of Fitz’s Pub on Oct. 2. EU students are known to frequent the location. (PC: Sarah Matzkin)

Drinking culture in college is not a new trend. Thousands of college students frequent parties and bars to unwind and have a good time.

But what if you aren’t 21? How are students able to drink and buy drinks if they aren’t of legal age? One of the most common solutions is to buy a fake ID.

While a fake ID is intended to be used to purchase alcohol, some users find that it allows them to meet friends or a community at bars.

One Elmhurst University student who has a fake ID feels she has more fun at bars than at parties, where you do not need a fake ID. She feels she can dance with her friends more freely, and it allows her to meet more people who are juniors and seniors.

“Everyone goes out on Thursday, and then on Friday I see them walking and we might have never talked to each other before, but we say hi because we danced together in the bar,” said the EU student.

She was reluctant at first to get a fake ID, but decided to join a bulk order for one after learning about the bar scene in Elmhurst. She feels pretty confident that it will not get taken or that she will not get in trouble as long as she is smart about using it.

She has learned that some bars are more lenient, which makes the ID easier to use. “As long as you have your ID with you and you show it, they really don’t care.”

City of Elmhurst Police Sergeant Colleen Bruketta says that she has seen an increase in fake IDs purchased from the internet, so police officers are provided with tools and examples of what to look for when trying to spot a fake ID.

She encourages her officers to do what is called a ‘bar check,’ which is when officers will go into a bar or restaurant and check the age of those intoxicated or who look underage.

“We pride ourselves on doing routine patrol in the city for the safety and security of the residents,” said Bruketta. “Once you leave an establishment after you have been drinking and go on the roadways, one mistake you cannot reverse is driving drunk.”

Once a fake ID is taken by an officer, they are submitted into evidence. They are then returned to the Secretary of State. Bruketta says that the police will often do something called ‘compliance checks’ which ensures that someone selling alcohol will not sell to someone underage.

Bruketta says that it is up to the bars if they feel that an ID is not up to standard, and they can ask for two forms of identification.

“We tell people, if you’re not sure, don’t serve them and see if they can give another form of identification,” said Bruketta.

Elmhurst Mayor and Liquor Commissioner Scott Levin says the consequences for an establishment violating one of Elmhurst’s liquor laws can range from a warning letter to a fine that can be up to almost $1,000 on the first violation.

There is a possibility of suspending the liquor license or even revoking it. Levin has learned that as time evolves, liquor has become more prevalent, and with this, Elmhurst has added 27 classes of liquor licenses.

Patrons line up outside of Fitz’s Pub on Oct. 2. EU students are known to frequent the location. (PC: Sarah Matzkin)

“I’m not as concerned about all these different licenses,” said Levin. “The concerns that I have are: that you’re not letting people drink underage, and you’re not overserving.”

He has noticed that the fake IDs are far more sophisticated and closer in look to real IDs than they were in the past.

In order to make sure these fake IDs are not passed off as real ones, anyone in Elmhurst who serves alcohol or checks ID cards must complete the Beverage Alcohol Sellers and Servers Education and Training or BASSET training.

The BASSET program is regulated by the Illinois Liquor Control Commission and Illinois requires anyone serving or selling alcohol to be certified.

“If you’re underage, we issue a citation, and you’ll go to the city court and that’s how we handle most of the cases,” said Levin. “I don’t think a lot of people realize that if you get a violation by using a fake license, you can lose your driver’s license.”

Even though there are consequences, people with fake IDs still take the risks to be able to get alcohol themselves.

Another EU student has a fake ID because he started to host parties at his house in high school and did not want to rely on others to get drinks.

He also got one in preparation for college so that he could visit his friends at other universities and go to the bar with them.

At the universities he visits his friends at, there is not a lot to do, so people go to the bars. “I feel like in any college town it’s kind of like an open secret,” the student said.

He has found that a lot of the college bars he has gone to are extremely lenient. He believes this is because a lot of these college towns’ economies are heavily influenced by the bars and the money they make.

He says he only uses his ID at certain places. He finds that restaurants have been less strict and that bars are harder to use a fake ID at.

“Restaurants won’t get penalized as hard because if a restaurant loses their liquor license due to irresponsibility, they still have food. A bar or a liquor store without a liquor license is a store that sells nothing,” said the student.