The Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Board unanimously decided to suspend McFadden’s Restaurant & Saloon’s liquor license just days after five people were stabbed inside the restaurant.
A police report says an out-of-control patron hit one officer so hard he had to get medical treatment. The agency says there was not enough security and some of the workers had to be threatened with arrest to get them to tell police what happened.
D.C.’s ABC Board moved quickly to suspend the restaurant’s liquor license.
“It’s just very shocking that someone would do that,” said D.C. resident Jacob Cutler. “They’re probably losing a lot of money after that.”
The move comes after a brawl about 1 a.m. Saturday. Police say a patron with a knife stabbed five people. All were hospitalized, including one with a knife wound to his kidney. Still, the agency says the victims would not cooperate with investigators, and it accused McFadden’s of also not cooperating.
Investigators say they found surveillance video from across the street that showed two workers “opening the roll up garage door at the apartment building and allowing an unknown individual who could have been the assailant to exit. That individual appeared to have blood on his hands.”
Witnesses reported that workers were “mopping up blood from the floor, thereby not preserving the crime scene.”
The suspension comes just before New Year’s Eve, a big moneymaker for bars and restaurants. Some nearby residents thought the suspension goes too far.
“It should be up to the customers to consumer responsibly,” said Jacob Mooallen.
But others had little sympathy.
“I think they deserved it,” said Aret Sahakyn. “It was a good thing that it happened, because always something was happening around here.”
Barnardo Nelson showed ABC 7 the wound he got during a night out at McFadden’s.
“I got stabbed close to my spine. It was a couple inches from the front of my chest,” he said. “Beyond lucky, could have died that night.”
ABC 7 was unable to get through to anyone from McFadden’s Tuesday night. Documents from the ABC Board say the restaurant has 72 hours to request a hearing. McFadden’s did appeal the decision and will have a hearing on Jan. 9.
Below is a document obtained from the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration containing a history of incidents at McFadden’s.