(KRON) — An investigation conducted by the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) revealed that a server from Hacienda Grill in Salinas sold alcohol to a 16-year-old customer before the underaged driver was involved in a fatal car crash on May 27.
Hacienda Grill’s license to sell alcohol has since been revoked, the ABC said.
Officials said after leaving the restaurant, the teenager drove “under the influence of alcohol on the wrong side of the road and crashed head-on into another vehicle.” The crash killed the driver that the minor drove into and injured three others, the ABC said.
The ABC said the TRACE (Target Responsibility for Alcohol Connected Emergencies) investigation was “immediately” conducted after the driver died in the crash, later revealing the server that served the minor was Diego Resendez, a Hacienda Grill employee.
The ABC sought “disciplinary action” against Hacienda Grill for “furnishing alcohol to a minor…causing great bodily injury or death.”
In response, the Salinas restaurant signed a settlement agreement, under which its liquor license will be revoked for one year “to allow for the license to be transferred,” the ABC said.
“Preventing underage drinking is a public safety priority,” said ABC Director Joseph McCullough. “We want to remind licensees and employees to check IDs carefully and help keep Californians safe.”
