The Herald Dispatch
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — A shooting early Friday at a bar deemed a public nuisance by Huntington officials has those officials pushing harder for its closure.
Three people were shot and one was in custody after a shooting that was reported just before 2 a.m. Friday at the Fairfield neighborhood bar, Gary’s Place, at 2005 10th Ave.
Huntington Police Chief Joe Ciccarelli confirmed three victims had been identified. Two were shot in the buttocks and one in the hand. All were transported to the hospital. The man shot in the hand, Willie Moten III, 29, was jailed and charged with wanton endangerment.
Prior to Friday’s incident, Huntington City Council had declared Gary’s Place a public nuisance during a meeting in August, which was followed by a circuit court filing asking Cabell Circuit Judge Chris Chiles to close the bar for good.
A Dec. 16 preliminary hearing has been set in the filing.
Gary “Gig” Robinson with the West Virginia Alcohol Beverage Control Administration said the bar’s liquor license has been suspended for 10 days, although that is subject to change.
“This will continue to unfold. We were aware of what happened (Friday),” he said. “We have been working with the local authorities and (Commissioner Ronald Moats) is taking swift action by suspending that license. We will be investigating and collecting information.”
While three were identified as having gunshot wounds, Ciccarelli said there could be more who were injured.
“A number of people fled the scene, and nobody wants to say anything,” he said. “That’s the usual routine.”
When they arrived early Friday, officers found “multiple bags of drugs,” Ciccarelli said.
About 15 folding chairs lined 10th Avenue in an empty lot next to the business later in the morning, brought out from inside the business for witnesses to sit in during questioning, although Ciccarelli said most were uncooperative.
Despite being unanimously declared a public nuisance in August by Huntington City Council, the business has remained open.
Tuesday night, The Herald-Dispatch observed the parking lot to Gary’s Place overflowing with cars. Lights around the entrances also were turned on and a green neon sign reading “open” was displayed in one of the inside windows. The light again was on Friday morning.
Ciccarelli said without a court order, police do not have the power to close the bar, even though the business continues to be seen as a danger to the neighborhood.
During a hearing in August, Scott Lemley, crime statistics analyst with the Huntington Police Department, presented the council with 146 calls that had been made to police and/or emergency services regarding the bar from Jan. 1, 2011, to Aug. 29, 2016. Of those calls, he said 23 were for shootings or shots fired and 39 were for fights or disturbances. The bar also has been the site of at least two homicides.
Ciccarelli confirmed police have responded to the bar several times since it was declared a public nuisance, including a shots-fired call on Monday.
“I just think this is a demonstration of the recklessness and reckless disregard of the owners,” he said. “Well over a year ago they were put on notice and have taken no measures to improve security or anything to prevent these kinds of things from happening.”
Gary W. Stanley, the owner of Gary’s Place, defended his bar at the August City Council hearing, saying the majority of the reports happened when the bar is closed and should not be associated with his business.
He said it’s the neighborhood, not his bar, that contributes to the fights and shootings mentioned, and if his business did close, the incidents would likely still occur. He said he raised the fence around his property, installed night-vision security cameras and also has security check patrons at the door with wands.
Ciccarelli said he requested Friday the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission permanently revoke the business’s liquor license.
An injunction has been filed by the city in Cabell Circuit Court asking for the bar’s closure. Huntington City Attorney Scott Damron said he had been waiting to get a hearing date until Stanley got an attorney.
“We received a response from an attorney yesterday,” he said. “It was basically a notice of representation. After I heard about last night, I called and got an emergency hearing.”
Stanley’s attorney, former Huntington City Attorney Scott McClure, had not responded to the circuit court filing as of Friday. Damron said he believes Stanley still has nine days to respond to the lawsuit.
Follow reporter Courtney Hessler at Facebook.com/CHesslerHD and via Twitter @HesslerHD
Read more at http://www.herald-dispatch.com