Bad Water for H20?
The story usually follows the same line -- a night club is the scene of a violent incident, the District responds by temporarily shutting it down and it invariably loses its liquor license and goes out of business. It happened at Club U, at Kili's Kafe and at Club 1919. And after a fatal shooting over the weekend at H20, the swanky waterfront club may be next.
One man was shot and killed in an altercation outside the club on Sunday morning. Two men had been arguing inside the club as it closed, and both were ejected by bouncers. One went to his car, retrieved a gun, shot the other and was then shot himself by a police officer working security. In response, D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier used emergency powers and shut down the club for four days.
Today the Post reports that the club's owner, Abdul Khanu, has protested the closing of the club, arguing:
We did everything right. These guys had been arguing and feuding in their neighborhood for some time. These same two guys could have seen each other at a Lakers game and got into it. I would just like to know: If the same situation happened at the Verizon Center...would she [Lanier] shut down the Verizon Center? I think it's politics. I think it's public relations.
While the details of the shootings are investigated, Khanu's question is worth considering. According to the news, H20 ejected the men, neither of which were armed at the time. The killing occured outside of the club. At this point, there seems to be little to indicate that the club could have done anything to prevent the shooting. What it did manage to do was take down the shooter -- using an off-duty police officer hired for additional security. Even more notable is the fact that police have only been called to respond to crimes linked to the club seven times this year, down from 25 last year, and officials were clear that it had never been much of a problem. So why would Lanier take the step of shutting down the club, even if temporarily? Would she have done the same had the killed occured after dinner at a swanky restaurant? Or after a heated feud over team loyalty at RFK? Probably not.
The power to shut down a club temporarily is a useful one, especially if it can be proven that the club did not exercise its responsibilities to prevent violence. But should emergency powers be applied in every case?
Photo from film.dc.gov