The Polk County Sheriff’s office operates an ongoing Operation Pop Top campaign in which deputies visit various stores to see if store personnel would sell to an alcoholic beverage to someone under 21 years of age (Florida's minimum age for legal alcohol consumption). 

The person attempting to purchase alcohol was an 18-year old member of the PCSO's Cadet Program. Over the past week, a total of seven stores were checked for alcohol sales; the clerk at one store (7-Eleven, 49599 US-27 N in Davenport) sold alcohol to the 18-year-old cadet. The other six stores checked were found to be in compliance with state law. The 7-Eleven sales clerk, Rebecca Maree, was subsequently arrested for selling an alcoholic beverage to a person under 21 (a second degree misdemeanor). 

"Providing alcohol to minors isn’t only illegal; it can have serious, life-altering consequences. When underage individuals gain access to alcohol, it can result in poor choices, accidents, or even worse outcomes. We each have a responsibility to protect our community, especially our young people, when it comes to stores giving minors access to alcohol. The risks just aren’t worth it." – Grady Judd, Sheriff