Violations Draw License Suspensions, Fines

Liquor Control Commission delivers decisions and a warning

Two local restaurants each received fines and liquor license suspensions for violating the emergency order prohibiting in house dining.
Jimmy’s Roadhouse received two $300 fines for a total of $600 and Brew Works received three fines for a total of $900. Both will also have  their licenses suspended for the next 60 days.

From the Jimmy’s Roadhouse hearing:

“The Licensee engaged in illegal acts on the licensed premises by remaining open for in person dining despite the Public Health Emergency Order not to do so. By committing this illegal act, the Licensee is in violation of Rule 436.1101(1) and subject to discipline.”

"The Licensee’s actions constitute an imminent threat to the public’s health, safety, and welfare. The Commission’s summary suspension under the Administrative Procedures Act was appropriate. There need not be proof of an actual injury to support a threat to public health, safety, or welfare. The Licensee is not free to do as they please until a case of COVID-19 transmission is confirmed to the Licensee’s establishment. To adopt this line of reasoning would allow a licensed establishment flout any rule until there is a negative consequence including to serve alcohol to intoxicated persons until a patron goes out and harms a member of the public; licensees are always prohibited from overserving customers from day one of their licensure, not from some arbitrary point after a customer kills another person while driving drunk.

“Economic necessity does not allow the Licensee to pick and choose which laws to comply with. Almost all restaurants in the state have complied with the Order despite the hardship that has resulted; only a very select few restaurants have deemed themselves above the law. Further, this Licensee made no attempt to implement even the most basic and essential safety measure to combat this deadly disease: requiring wearing masks. It is necessarily difficult to have customers wear masks while eating and drinking, but it is entirely possible, reasonable, and essential to have staff wear masks while serving their customers. The Licensee did not require staff to wear masks, completely undermining restaurants’ best argument that they should be allowed to remain open: that they can and will operate safely.

"The Licensee is warned that further fines, suspensions, or a revocation of the Licensee’s liquor license could result if the Licensee continues to operate in violation of the law or violates the Order of the Commission."

Similar language could be found in the Brew Works hearing with the addition of violations incurred by allowing bowling.

Here are links to the violation orders

https://www.michigan.gov/documents/lara/CV-508758_-_Corys_Restaurant_Inc._Jimmys_Roadhouse_709878_7.pdf

https://www.michigan.gov/documents/lara/CV-508760_-_M._B._and_D._LLC_Brew_Works_of_Fremont_709879_7.pdf.