LCB Ups The Use Of Metal Detectors At Nuisance Bars

By Tony Romeo

HARRISBURG (CBS) - A spokeswoman for the Liquor Control Board says the agency has been requiring more use of metal detectors by nuisance bars in recent years.

If you have been noticing metal detector wands in use at the entrance to bars and nightclubs more often it may be because the Liquor Control Board is requiring them at nuisance establishments.

"The Liquor Control Board will enter into a conditional licensing agreement when we have determined that there are problems with patrons at facilities where we think health and safety is an issue," explains LCB spokeswoman Stacey Witalec. "And wanding them might be a measure that could prevent an incident from taking place."

Witalec said the ability to require the use of metal detectors as part of conditional licenses is not new but has been used more often in recent years in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and other larger cities in the commonwealth.

She adds that some establishments have decided on their own to use them.