City liquor board is not enforcing state law

Panel has allowed some to hold, sell alcohol permits long after those licenses should have expired

A number have gotten around required time limits, review finds

The Baltimore City Board of Liquor License Commissioners has allowed a handful of people, many of them vendors who lease poker machines and pool tables to bars, to hold onto and sell valuable liquor licenses long after the licenses should have expired.

State law dictates that inactive licenses die after 180 days without an extension by the liquor board, or 360 days maximum. But a review of inactive licenses by The Sun shows that a number of people have gotten around the law, including Gilbert Sapperstein, owner of All-State Boiler Service Inc., who in May pleaded guilty to conspiracy, bribery and theft in connection with a scheme to defraud the city school system. Sapperstein repaid $3.3 million as part of a plea deal and is set to spend 18 months in jail.

State law requires liquor license holders to disclose felony convictions to the liquor board when they apply for a new license or renew one. But Sapperstein's status as a "secured creditor," who does not operate a liquor establishment, and whose felony conviction came after the most recent renewal period, complicates matters, said Gerald Langbaum, an assistant state attorney general who works for the liquor board.

Court records show that Sapperstein, who also runs a vending business called Star Coin Machine Co., has had an interest in dozens of liquor licenses over the years. Typically the deals work this way: Sapperstein lends money to liquor businesses and holds their licenses as collateral -- and then he takes control of the license if they default.

Liquor board records indicate that Sapperstein is trying to sell at least two inactive licenses that have exceeded the 180-day limit. Sapperstein, who has not started serving his jail sentence, did not respond to requests for comment. His attorney, Gregg Bernstein, said he did not know enough about the licenses to talk about them.

Mark S. Fosler, the city liquor board chairman, has vowed to crack down on brokers. Liquor licenses in the city sell for between $50,000 and $100,000 and are in high demand in entertainment hot spots such as Canton and Federal Hill. Fosler said he wants to void the illegal licenses -- which compete with legitimate licenses on the open market -- as soon as possible.

"We've got to bring those licenses to public hearings in short order," he said.