St Louis Gay Bar Owner Arrested After Police SUV Crash
TL/DR –
An LGBTQ+ bar owner in Missouri, Chad Morris, was arrested after a police vehicle accidentally crashed into his bar, with Morris then allegedly confronting and pushing an officer. Morris’ attorney, Javad Khazaeli, has disputed the police’s account, demanding the release of all video footage from officers’ body-worn cameras and calling for an external agency to investigate the case. Morris was originally charged with a felony, third-degree assault on a special victim, but this was reduced to misdemeanors of fourth-degree assault and resisting arrest following public outcry.
Missouri LGBTQ+ Bar Owner Faces Charges after Police Accidentally Crash into His Establishment
An LGBTQ+ bar owner in Missouri, who was jailed after police accidentally crashed into his establishment, is facing charges filed against him by prosecutors. These charges were quickly reduced amid a public outcry over the case’s circumstances. “Nobody should have to go through this – going from being a victim to having to defend yourself, your family, and your business,” James Pence, the husband of the arrested Chad Morris, told reporters at a Tuesday news conference in St. Louis.
Morris was closing up Bar:PM, his and Pence’s drinking establishment, early Monday when a police sport-utility vehicle plowed into the front of the business. Two rookie St. Louis metro police department officers were in the cruiser at the time of the wreck. The cruiser’s driver claimed he feared he was traveling too close to a parked car, leading to an accident.
Police accused Morris of confronting an officer who arrived shortly after the crash, hurling obscenities at him, and shoving him in the chest. An attorney for Morris, Javad Khazaeli, denied the police’s version of events, challenging them to release all video of the confrontation captured by the officers’ body-worn cameras. A St. Louis Post-Dispatch article also showed reporters parts of a bystander video that did not capture any confrontation like the one described by police.
“The police were clearly the aggressors here,” Khazaeli said at Tuesday’s news conference, before releasing surveillance camera footage showing the crash. “When he was arrested by police, they had beaten him and ripped his shirt off.” Khazaeli called for an outside agency to investigate this case.
Locals have met news about Morris’s arrest with an outpouring of support. Patrons packed Bar:PM on Tuesday night to show support for Morris. As a result of public outcry, prosecutors amended the charges against Morris on Tuesday to fourth-degree assault and resisting arrest, each of which are misdemeanors. Morris spent Monday in jail but was released on Tuesday, Pence’s birthday, without having to pay a bond.
“I’m happy for the support and to be out on my husband’s birthday,” Morris said to reporters. “So I just want to go home.” This event happens in the backdrop of a UCLA law school’s Williams Institute report that identified law enforcement discrimination and harassment as an ongoing and pervasive problem for LGBTQ+ people.
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