There’s plenty of support, especially in a university town like Lawrence, for the state vigorously enforcing laws against underage drinking, but the case against a local bar raises questions of basic fairness.

The Hawk, 1340 Ohio, has had its share of underage drinking violations in recent years, but it still deserves fair, consistent treatment. A switch in enforcement policy by the state’s Division of Alcohol Beverage Control has resulted in an agreement being nullified and the Hawk’s license being put in jeopardy.

In a 2000 agreement, the ABC created a penalty schedule for the Hawk stating that any violations before that time wouldn’t be used when considering new cases. Now ABC enforcers are dipping back into 1999 and 2000 to present a total of nine violations, enough to recommend that the Hawk’s license be revoked.

No one at the ABC disputes that the 2000 agreement was made, but they say that because such agreements no longer are being used that the pact with the Hawk no longer is valid. Besides, they add, the agreement was only a guideline, not a binding agreement.

The owners of the Hawk have a right to be upset. Because the rules have been changed in midstream, they may lose their business. Maybe the agreement was the wrong way to deal with violations at the Hawk, but if state officials made that agreement, it should be honored.

Apparently, the Hawk is not the only establishment in the state affected by the ABC’s change of direction. This doesn’t seem like the proper way to treat any Kansas business owner.