Four businesses in Marietta were written up after police said they sold alcohol to a minor during a sting.
From gas stations to bars, police tested 20 establishments on Tuesday to see if they'd comply with the city ordinance against selling alcohol to minors.
Police only released the names of the 16 businesses that passed, neglecting to provide information about the four failures fined $500.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution asked why the department didn’t release the names.
“Our preference was to keep the initial story a positive ‘thank-you’ to the businesses that got it right,” said Marietta police spokesman Charles McPhilamy.
He said in an email that “we chose to keep that OUT of the (press releases) moving forward.”
But after getting "asked by multiple sources including social media requests from city residents," the department commented on its original Facebook announcement of the sting with the names of the violators.
He said the department chose to do so “in the spirit of transparency.”
It wasn’t immediately clear if the department will continue to withhold the names of establishments in the future.
The Cobb County Police Department has in the past chosen to release the names of businesses that failed.
Here are the four Marietta establishments fined for selling alcohol to a minor:
• QuikTrip at Sandtown and Powder Springs streets Southwest
• Chevron at Cobb Parkway and Georgia Route 120
• Texaco at Roswell and Fairground streets Northeast
• Citgo at Franklin Gateway Southeast and West Tower Road
These 16 complied with the city ordinance:
• El Ranchero, 562 Cobb Parkway South
• Costa Mar Seafood & Grill, 677 Franklin Gateway Southeast
• Barber Bistro, 1871 Cobb Parkway South
• Red Hare Brewing, 1998 Delk Industrial Blvd.
• Cafe Hot Wing, 1153 Roswell Road
• Laredos Mexican Grill, 1860 Sandy Plains Road
• Rusty Barrel, 138 Powers Ferry Road
• Chevron, 1946 Roswell Road
• El Nopal, 611 Cobb Parkway North
• Johnnie MacCracken’s, 15 Atlanta St.
• Mulligan’s*, 698 Roswell St.
• RaceTrac, 749 South Marietta Parkway Southeast
• Aldi, 1260 Powder Springs St.
• Kroger, 1000 Whitlock Ave.
• CVS, 300 Powder Springs St.
• Chicken and the Egg, 800 Whitlock Ave.
*Mulligan’s was recently sold and is not currently serving alcohol. The new owner is seeking their own liquor license.
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