The Blue Light bar was cited to the Chattanooga Beer Board on Thursday for violations that occurred on Jan. 22 and 29. The bar was accused of the same two violations both nights: the failure to report a disorder from a landline phone and operating a disorderly place. It was penalized in November for the same things in addition to other infractions.
In the six months that the bar has been in business, it has been penalized six times prior to what it received on Thursday.
The history includes a three-day suspension given on Nov. 4, 2021 for allowing an employee to consume alcohol where he worked. The same day, a letter of reprimand was given for selling beer off-premise, a five-day suspension of the beer license was given for operating a disorderly place and a six-day suspension was handed out for another charge of selling beer off-premise.
At a meeting on Nov. 18, the beer license was suspended for 30 days for failure to report a disorder and was followed by a revocation of the permit for another charge of operating a disorderly place. The bar has been allowed to stay open since that time because it is appealing the decisions by the Beer Board in the Hamilton County Chancery Court.
The latest round of violations occurred in January. The officer who wrote the police report for a call on Jan. 22 was unable to be at the Beer Board meeting Thursday so that hearing was postponed until the next scheduled meeting. But Chattanooga Police Officer Dillon Johnston, who responded to the call on Jan. 29, was present to testify. That night, he answered the call of a simple assault at the Blue Light after three different women reported to private security guards that they had been “punched in the face” by the same man. All three declined to file a charge against him and proceeded to leave the bar. The suspect also left the scene but came back later that evening. The guard did call police to report the incident at that time, but the call was made after a lapse between when he was made aware of the assaults and when the man returned later that night. The city’s beer ordinance requires that reports are to be made immediately, which is seen as a measure that could prevent an episode from escalating.
The beer ordinance also requires that calls to notify police of disorders be made from a landline registered to the business, which identifies the location a call comes from. This night, the security personnel made the call from his personal cell phone to report an assault and disorder. The report coming from the wrong phone is another violation. Brian Joyce, a 50 percent owner of the business, said it saves one to two minutes for a guard to use his cell phone instead of the time it would take to walk behind the bar to use the landline. When asked why another guard did not make a follow up call from the phone registered to the bar, Mr. Joyce said that the security company only communicates with flashlights, not radios.
The charge against the bar was always about reporting a “disorder,” however Attorney Zach Darnell, representing Blue Light, contended that the language in the city’s beer ordinance lacked clarity because it did not adequately define the word “disorder.” Both he and Mr. Joyce repeatedly testified there had been no fight in the bar that night, but Assistant City Attorney Melinda Foster said the term disorder does not mean that a fight took place and that there are other elements that constitute a disorder. She advised the board to use common sense to define the term.
Board member Vince Butler said this incident rose to the level of assault for the security guard to have reported it. “If something is happening that is distressing in a bar, you have the responsibility to call police. You do not have to wait to see if something escalates,” said Board Member Brooke King.
Vague language in the ordinance regarding the requirement that reports must be made from a landline was also noted by Attorney Darnell and acknowledged by the board. The Beer Board attorney said that to receive a beer license, a business must have a landline. It also states that disorders must be immediately reported to the Chattanooga Police. The implication, said Attorney Foster, is that the call should be made from the land line, however it is not stated explicitly in the ordinance.
In deciding the outcome of the hearings, in addition to the testimony presented, the board was advised to consider the patterns of disorderly conduct from prior incidents.
For the violations on Jan. 29, the charge of failure to report a disorder to police in a timely manner and from a landline, the Blue Light’s beer license will be suspended for two weeks beginning March 3.
The motion for a two-week suspension for operating a disorderly place, which would run consecutively with the telephone violation, failed to pass because the board felt that the language in the ordinance could be construed as unclear. But the motion for a two-week suspension to run concurrently with the first passed unanimously.
Mr. Joyce has said that he believes the Chattanooga Beer Board is biased against The Blue Light. He said his establishment has been penalized for the same things that happen in other bars, but without consequences. His appeals to keep a beer license will be heard by the Hamilton County Chancery Court in March, but the hearing for the remaining two violations that took place on Jan. 22 is scheduled for the Beer Board meeting on March 3.
In regular business, the beer board gave River City Company a special events beer permit for most days between March 4 and April 3. The month of March will be filled with events from “Rock the Riverfront.” The festival will be at the Chattanooga Green, 210 Riverfront Parkway, and will have varying hours depending on the day but each night the activity will end at 10 p.m. There will be bars set up, giant see-saws, entertainment and live music. The location will have Chattanooga Police patrolling the perimeter to ensure alcohol does not leave the area. Large crowds are expected said Dawn Hjelseth, vice president of River City Company.
The large annual fundraiser for the Creative Discovery Museum, AmuseUm 2022, was approved for a beer permit for March 5. This year it will be a block party outside the museum at 321 Chestnut Street. It is being held outdoors because the museum is being remodeled, said Director of Development Denise Karnes. The event is open only to ticket holders that are 21 or older.
One Carry-Out beer license was given on Thursday due to a change in ownership from father to son Michael Ali. The convenience store, Mr. Zip at 1905 Gunbarrel Road, is located at the corner of Gunbarrel and Igou Gap Roads. This store has a cash register that scans IDs for age and employees have been instructed not to override the system. They will also call 911 if people are seen loitering in the parking lot, said Mr. Ali.