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Uphams Corner liquor store cited for staying open past its closing time - by three minutes

The owner of Camilo Liquors II, 735 Dudley St., had to explain to the Boston Licensing Board today why he was violating the terms of his license by continuing to sell liquor past his legal 11 p.m. closing time on May 29 - a police citation said an officer saw a clerk selling liquor to one person, with four or five additional people lined up at the counter at 11:03 p.m.

But Francisco Camilo said the clock inside his store read 10:58 p.m. - and his phone said it was 10:59 - so he felt he wasn't doing anything wrong. He added he already had two of the store's three front metal grates down.

Still, when police order you to shut, you shut, so he took the liquor away from the woman he was waiting on and told the other women in line there'd be no sales for them.

Camilo's lawyer asked for leniency given the time discrepancy. If the violation had been at 11:30, he said, the citation would make sense.

A nearby resident asked for permission to explain the woes a liquor store staying open even until 11 p.m. is causing the neighborhood, but board Chairwoman Nicole Murati Ferrer turned her down because she was not on scene that particular night and the hearing was just about that specific incident.

The board rules Thursday on what action, if any, to take.

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Comments

Cell phones are usually synched to the atomic clock. If we can't agree that the (expletive) atomic clock is the standard of time, then we're broken as a society.

He sold booze at 10:59 if his phone says 10:59. Also a (expletiver) move by Boston's finest to refuse to allow the customers in line to complete their purchases. Path of least resistance strikes again. Why find real crimes to stop when you can go after a liquor store right at close?

I'm paying cops high five to six figures to go into liquor stores one minute before close, and I'm paying people on welfare to get manicures with their EBT cards. Come on, fellow citizens. Get angry about waste.

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You aren't paying for any of those services.

But I hear what your saying, but these code enforcement divisions actually make a lot of money so resources aren't really being wasted on anything.

I think these enforcement guys should actually do the opposite and make sure stores stay open until they say they will. SuperBowl Sunday a few years ago a packie closed on me 7 minutes before the listing on the door. I was pissed.

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I indicated that I pay income taxes. Am I misunderstanding the tax code?

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And like I said, these divisions save money.

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these guys usually give stores about 10 or 11 breaks before they start laying down the law.

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the above point, WHY ARE COPS BUSTING STORES WHEN THE CITY IS OVERCOME WITH VIOLENT CRIME. Peter Nice = defend the cops at all cost!

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People hanging outside of stores, hanging out, playing their radio too late, etc, etc.

They want the police to do something about it so they call the police and the police respond and do something about it.

(I feel like I'm talking to my 2 year old)

They don't have all 2,500 Boston cops assigned to gun patrols in Mattapan you know.

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Its summer and people hang out where it is cooler. Cops could instead crack down on children riding motor scooters and cyclists breaking laws than turn away customers 3 minutes late.

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Any evidence that this store is some kind of egregious repeat offender?

Citing someone for an 11:03 PM sale sounds like a warning for having supported the wrong candidate for some office, or for having failed to support the right one enthia$tically enough.

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Does neighbor complaints about the store not closing on time count?

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it depends on the neighbor :o)

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But it depends more on the department employee and whether or not they care enough.

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What does it matter to anyone else whether they sell their last bottle at 10:59 pm or 11:04 pm?

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but sometimes liquor stores, bars, resturarants, etc have employees hang around after closing and this often spills out onto the sidewalk/street in front of the establishment. These employees often times have friends who also partake in the illegal activities.

99% of the time it doesn't bother anyone. Sometimes people live above these places though and they want something done.

This may or may not have happened here. Maybe the cop was an ahole, or maybe he was a dirty cop and the owner owed him gambling money and the cop was there to collect. I don't know.

I'm going to bet the store was warned a few times about their activities though, but thats just me.

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Is hanging out on a sidewalk an "illegal activity?"

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The people are on that sidewalk drinking at night and making noise that disturbs people.

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It's hard to tell with some folks around here. I think there are some who really believe that "hanging out on the sidewalk" is illegal.

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aren't there open container laws and night noise ordinances? Or is that only in Allston?

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Which is why she wasn't allowed to testify.

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If highly-paid code enforcement officers write so many nit-picky tickets that the division makes a net profit, I don't consider that a good thing for the community.

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If highly-paid code enforcement officers write so many nit-picky tickets that the division makes a net profit, I don't consider that a good thing for the community.

And voice your displeasure.

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"You should attend these meetings then. And voice your displeasure."

That would be a waste of my time, since I wouldn't be allowed to speak unless I had been at that particular store at 11:03 pm:

"Chairwoman Nicole Murati Ferrer turned her down because she was not on scene that particular night and the hearing was just about that specific incident."

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Go look them up. There are all sorts of public meetings with different committees, public comment periods, processes in which to petition rules, etc, etc.

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This isn't 'nam, Donny.

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Boston Licensing Board cannot issue fines, they can only suspend a business's license. So this is a complete money losing endeavor for the city taxpayers - we pay the cops to issue the BS citation and get OT to testify on it, we pay the licensing board to hold a hearing over the BS citation, and then we lose tax dollars when the business is forced to close for a few days because of said BS violation.

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How is it you know his phone said 10:59?

(Not that changes the larger argument that this is ridiculous over-enforcement)

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The guy testified (he had to raise his hand and swear to tell the truth and everything) his phone read 10:59.

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... or are you seriously claiming that his phone therefore said 10:59?

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I'm saying that he testified under oath that his phone read 10:59.

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... shouldn't they still sell to me? Closing time is when you stop letting people in, not when you stop serving the people already inside. Check out any post office or bank or supermarket at closing time.

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Suspect there was some other reason for cop being such a dick.

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Wouldn't surprise me if the local constabulary has gotten other complaints about the store - as evidenced by the fact that the woman from the neighborhood sat up front with the police detective who read the report to the board (as noted, Ferrer told her she couldn't testify - but that she could file her own complaint and seek a hearing before the board).

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You are not allowed to sell liquor after 11PM, irrespective of when the patron entered your store.

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in terms of closing lines, cash registers, etc.

Ever been that guy at a sox game?

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Closing time to the licensing board is closing time. If people are in line at 10:59 p.m. and the clock turns 11, tough, legally, those people are not supposed to be served. That's why restaurants/bars are actually supposed to stop serving some time before their closing time.

Whether this is right or not is another matter, but that's how it's been enforced, at least for the last few years.

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Really?

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On what's truly important. Was Ms. Ferrer looking as lovely as always? And was she wearing a sun dress.?

Adam, please think of your readers when reporting on these vital circumstances.

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a local restaurant/bar last night and 3 plain clothes cops came in and were examining the various licenses posted on a board and conversing with the owner.
I couldn't understand why in this "modern age" of computers and tracking software the city does not know who is/isn't in compliance with their licenses.
Why do cops have to spend the time inspecting businesses only to find everything in order?

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These places are required to post certain things (licenses, OUIL penalties), they have to label their taps, have a set price list, keep distribution records, etc, etc.

These are things that someone has to physically check.

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And I agree.

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