SHASTA COUNTY –  Two Shasta County men were scheduled to be arraigned on November 16, 2015 for charges that involve providing  alcohol to underage drinkers, some of whom  were injured in a solo vehicle accident on State Route 44 on June 20, 2015.  Ten people were in the vehicle at the time of the crash, all had been drinking, nine of them were under the age of 21 and were injured in the accident.

“This underscores the dangers of underage drinking and the irresponsibleness of furnishing alcohol to those under the legal drinking age,” said California Statewide Law Enforcement Association (CSLEA) President Alan Barcelona.  “California Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC)  agents conduct special investigations when there are serious incidents involving underage drinking and find out who provide those kids with alcohol.”

Through their investigation, ABC agents determined Trevor Richard Lackie, 34, of Shingletown and Alex Andrew Mello, 25, of Shingletown, furnished alcohol to multiple minors involved in the crash.

Following the solo vehicle crash, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) contacted  ABC about the incident and ABC immediately launched a parallel investigation through its TRACE program. TRACE stands for Target Responsibility for Alcohol-Connected Emergencies.  An official investigative report was filed in September of 2015 with the Shasta County District Attorney’s Office and arrest warrants were issued for Lackie and Mello for their role in the incident. Both men face up to one year in jail and up to a $1,000.00 fine or both.

“There is no time in which anyone should be providing alcohol to anyone under 21,” said Kevin Highbaugh, president of California Alcoholic Beverage Control Agents  (CABCA).  “We are coming up on the holidays,  and while we work diligently year-round to weed out those serving alcohol to young people under 21,  we especially want to stress the importance of following the law as we head into a season of celebrating friends and family.  Too many things go wrong when young people are furnished and consume alcohol.  Help us to keep our young people safe.”