Three more Uptown bars — Cooter Brown’s, Snake and Jake’s Christmas Club Lounge and Dos Jefes — and corner stores on Oak Street and in Central City have all been added to the docket before the city’s Alcohol Beverage Control board following sweeps by state agents, and will get their first public hearing at a meeting Tuesday.
The establishments were visited by agents with the state Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control as part of a citywide series of sweeps, not just in Uptown, said Sherri Wilder, a community liaison in City Councilwoman Susan Guidry’s office. The ATC was checking sales of tobacco to minors, or allowing people younger than 18 into establishments that primarily sell alcohol, Wilder said.
All three bars are charged with maintaining a public nuisance, allowing minors (under 18) to enter, and selling tobacco to minors — as does Wit’s Inn in Mid-City (TJ’s Bar in Gentilly, another new addition to the docket, faces only the public nuisance charges). Oak Super Discounts is charged with public nuisance and allowing minors in, and Uptown Food Market on Seventh Street also faces the public nuisance charge, as does Nia’s Half Time bar in New Orleans East.
A number of Uptown bars have been met with aggressive enforcement by the city over the past year or so. Two Maple Street college bars, Rocco’s and TJ Quills, have signed strict operating agreements after being charged with violating alcohol laws, and Big Time Tips in Hollygrove was closed permanently.
Also on Tuesday’s docket are long-running cases against The Show on Tchoupitoulas, Key Food Store on Louisiana Avenue and a more recent case against Mimosa Entertainment Center in New Orleans East.
The meeting is at 1 p.m. Tuesday at in council chambers at City Hall, 1300 Perdido Street.
The city is running a money grab sting operation. They send a person in
during the slow hours, he straight to the bar asking for change. does
not order a drink or make any pretense that he is visiting the bar as a
patron. After getting the change he goes to the cigarette machine and
buys cigarettes. Bam! They got ya!
I call BS. No way are Cooter’s, Snake n Jakes and Dos Jefes anywhere near “nuisance” levels.
If the city was trying to make money they would have sent in NOPD. This is State Police and ATC. They went to the bar, they should have carded them. Larry from Cooters has broken the law to many times and it is finally catching up with him. Snake n Jakes is just a dump
Does anyone else see a possible correlation between the mayor’s underage son’s arrest and this current round of raids? While it is true that these sweeps come in waves every few years, I find the timing of this one a little too coincidental. It’s a good thing they are focusing on the REALLY serious problems afflicting this city and not the high violent crime rate, poor public education, high homeless rate, etc. ; )
Likely more to do with the Superbowl than the mayor’s prodigal pride and joy.
The “quality of life” Nazis better check to see if Dos Jefe’s is hiding a minor in the attic. And that “nuisance”, Cooter Brown’s, has been getting away with murder for what, 50 years? It’s about time we get some “protection” from these evil places. A little advice: hire some big doormen to sit and check IDs. Bring back Prohibition!
they came at a busy time (7:40 pm during jazz fest)…they just asked if there was a cig machine….and was told yes.. no money changed hands… they wouldent have come in our establishment unless they were getting paid to do so…
18 is old enough to die in a war and vote so that is damn old enough to drink a beer! Screw the Federal Government that imposed the stupid 21 drinking age on us! Screw any carpetbagging State “law” enforcement that “enforces” such idiot laws!