The Supreme Court of Russia has refused to reinstate a conviction against a shop cashier who sold a single can of beer to a minor, ruling that the transaction caused no harm to society.
Russian legal news agency RAPSI reported that a Deputy Prosecutor General had asked the highest court to overturn a cassation ruling that dismissed the case. Prosecutors argued that the sale posed a direct risk to the physical and moral development of young people.
Case materials show that the cashier failed to check the age of a young female customer before scanning the beverage at the checkout counter. The store worker had previously been held administratively liable for committing similar infractions on earlier occasions.
Dismissal of court fine
The cashier was initially sentenced to pay a fine of 55,000 rubles under Russian law. However, a court of cassation later terminated the criminal proceedings on the grounds that the incident was an insignificant infraction that resulted in no negative consequences.
Police officers who were present inside the shop immediately confiscated the 0.45-litre can of beer before the customer had any opportunity to drink it. Judges in the cassation review also took into account that the buyer was very close to reaching the legal age of majority.
In his appeal to the Supreme Court, the Deputy Prosecutor General challenged the dismissal, asserting that strict penalties were required because the cashier had repeatedly sold alcoholic drinks to underage buyers. The prosecution stressed that state restrictions on alcohol sales exist specifically to protect the upbringing of minors.
Supreme Court ruling
The Supreme Court rejected the prosecution's demand to toughen the cashier's sentence and upheld the dismissal of the case. In its ruling, the judicial panel emphasized that Russian courts must properly evaluate the actual degree of public danger presented by an unlawful act.
Judges concluded that the specific circumstances of the case showed an absence of public danger. The court noted that beer is classified as a low-alcohol beverage, that the sale involved only a single 0.45-litre container, and that police intervention ensured the minor never consumed the drink.
The decision follows other recent rulings by Russia's highest judicial body concerning alcohol laws and enforcement. In a separate finding, the Supreme Court ruled that revoking a driver's licence for driving while intoxicated is illegal unless law enforcement provides official documentary proof establishing the exact identity of the person behind the wheel.
