N.O.L. v. District of Columbia

Brett Cass was convicted of possessing an alcoholic beverage while he was under twenty-one years of age, see D.C. Code § 25-130 (a) (Supp. 2000), and sentenced to nine months of probation, under D.C. Code § 25-130 (b-1), a $300 fine under D.C. Code § 25-130 (b-2), and 40 hours of community service work. While Cass does not dispute that he violated the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act ("ABC Act"), he contends that his infraction is not a crime punishable under D.C. Code § 25-130 (b-1) or any other provision of the ABC Act. He claims that the only sanctions available for underage possession of alcohol are an administrative fine and a temporary suspension of driving privileges, which are civil in character and should not cause him to suffer the ancillary penalties associated with a misdemeanor, such as, for example, having to disclose the conviction on employment applications. In the alternative, he suggests that the ABC Act is ambiguous, and any doubts about its meaning should be resolved in his favor under the rule of lenity.