Councilmember Jim Graham (D-Ward 1) is well known for being thoughtful, energetic, and responsive to the needs of his constitutents. He lords over the District’s most diverse and vibrant ward, participating in discussions on everything from transportation to crime to consumer and regulatory affairs. It was no surprise, then, that Graham dove headfirst into last Saturday’s tragic killing of 17-year-old Taleshia Ford at Club 1919. He quickly informed constituents of the night’s events, pushed Police Chief Cathy Lanier to shut down the club, and started advocating for a legislative fix. But that’s where he went wrong. Though Graham’s response has made for good publicity, it has also made for poor public policy. Tragic as Ford’s death was, a legislative fix as draconian as the one he’s proposed doesn’t solve the problem. Worse yet, it seems to make one tragic night into a problem worthy of such a fix, the facts notwithstanding.

Graham’s proposal — which, as the City Paper has reported, he might be waffling on — would involve banning minors from venues in the District that serve alcohol. As many of us surely know, this would signal the end of all-ages shows at some of our favorite haunts — the 9:30 Club and Black Cat among them. Why such a drastic measure? Because, according to Graham, mixing minors and alcohol necessarily leads to trouble. But does it? The facts surrounding Ford’s killing don’t mention any underage use of alcohol. Moreover, and more importantly, no one has claimed that her killing had anything to do with alcohol. Ford was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, and someone made the criminally punishable decision to carry a gun into the club. From what we know, she was enjoying a perfectly legal night out and unwittingly became the victim of a tragic shooting. The age of the people or the alcohol they may or may not have consumed have nothing to do with what happened to her. Is it good public policy to ban behaviour that 99 percent of the time does not result in criminal behavior?

Then there’s the issue of the club itself. As we noted earlier today, Graham has already stated that he doubted it would ever re-open. Why, exactly? Graham has promised to push the Alcohol Control Board to permanently revoke its license today, though he hasn’t indicated that the club has ever done anything to violate the provisions of its license. As for the club’s security, there’s nothing to indicate that the club owner or manager knowingly allowed guns into the club. Most of the venues we regularly visit don’t pat us down or force us to walk through metal detectors. If someone brought a gun into DC9 and randomly shot someone else, would we demand that the club’s owner be charged with negligence and have his liquor license revoked? Probably not. If it happened with surprising frequency and the owner did nothing about it, it might be a different story. But if Graham chooses to view every incident as a trend, it seems only fair that every bar and restaurant be held to the same high security standards — not just ones, as Graham implies, that cater to Go Go fans.

Even if Graham pushes the legislation he’s proposed, he’ll likely face stiff opposition. His ward is packed with bars and restaurants, none of which want to know that a freak incident could threaten their liquor license and their livelihood. Clubs that are regularly the scenes of violence and crime should surely suffer consequences — as Club U and Kili’s Kafe did — but one tragedy shouldn’t bring down the full force of the law. Minors and their parents may also have something to say. Attending all-ages shows provides many minors with something to do, from interacting with their peers to being exposed to culture — in a controlled environment, no less. District families might be none-too-happy to know that Graham’s proposal would have the unintended consequence of forcing their kids to stay home or aimlessly wander the streets.

Ultimately, Ford’s killing is a tragedy, cutting her down in the prime of her life. Graham should be applauded for being as responsive as he is, but we’d like him to take a step back and consider this for what it was — tragic. Could it have been prevented? It’s tough to say. Was alcohol to blame? Doesn’t seem like it. Was it minors mixing with drinkers? Doesn’t look like it. Was it the club? Again, nope. So why push legislation trying to pretend that it was?

Graham has announced that he will holding a roundtable discussion on this issue tomorrow at 2 p.m. in the D.C. Council chambers. Details here. If you can’t make it, submit your thoughts directly to Graham himself at grahamwone (at) gmail (dot) com.