The state Alcoholic Beverage Control Board on Wednesday reduced fines and days of suspension in an appeal from a Heber Springs country club tagged for multiple violations.
The Thunderbird Country Club, which has a private-club license to serve alcohol, was cited previously by the alcohol agency's enforcement arm for multiple offenses that included failure to cooperate with law enforcement officials, serving alcohol after hours, employees drinking on duty and serving intoxicated patrons. The club was fined $2,700, placed on probation for one year and given a seven-day suspension of operations by the agency.
After appealing that decision to the full board Wednesday, the fine was reduced to $2,000 and the suspension dropped to five days. The probation term was unchanged.
According to the board, the problems began July 8, when Heber Springs police Sgt. Mark Stine responded to a call about 2:30 a.m. from a resident complaining of a four-wheeler on the club's golf course. Stine told the board that after not finding the culprit, he went to the club's bar to tell the staff to be on the lookout.
By law, the club cannot serve alcohol after its 2 a.m. closing time. But Stine testified that loud music came from the darkened club and he saw people dancing while others were at the bar with beers.
Emily Watts, the club's manager, testified that employees did not hear Stine knocking on the club's door that night. Stine told the board members that he did not believe Watts or other club employees deliberately ignored him.
"She just plain didn't hear me," Stine said. "The music was extremely loud."
Watts said the club was indeed closed, that employees was listening to music while cleaning up and the patrons inside were waiting for rides home.
"The doors were locked at 2 a.m. and the porch light was off," Watts said.
Stine said that while he agreed the door was locked, it was obvious the bar was still open about 2:45 a.m. when he knocked on the door.
"There were beers sitting on the bar," Stine said. "A couple of people that weren't employees were sitting there smoking and drinking."
Because of Stine's testimony that he did not believe the club employees willfully ignored him when he was at the bar's door, the board dropped the part of the case regarding a failure to cooperate with law enforcement officials.
Stine at another time assisted in a traffic stop of Watts. She told the officers she was giving a ride home to two bar patrons who were too intoxicated to drive. Watts said she had had two drinks at 10:30 p.m. at the bar. She was arrested and charged with a DUI. The charge was later dismissed because of a paperwork error.
Richard Mays, the club's lawyer, told the board that because Watts was not on the clock at the time she was drinking, the charge of employees drinking on duty should be dropped. The board agreed.
An additional charge of serving intoxicated patrons was upheld by the board. That issue involved a woman who left the bar last fall and was subsequently arrested on a drunken-driving count.
In other business:
• The board awarded a private club license to El Palacio Mexican Restaurant in Warren despite opposition to the "family restaurant" serving alcohol.
• Owners of Club Level in Texarkana failed to appear at the meeting to appeal the decision to revoke its private club and beer on-premises permit. The action was taken Feb. 15 for failure to be a good neighbor, allowing drugs/marijuana on the premises, advertisement of free alcohol and allowing in and serving nonmembers. The board upheld the revocation.
Metro on 04/12/2018