Alcohol seized from Newell bar

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NEWELL - Liquor and alcohol at The Finish Line Bar and Grille, located at Washington and 2nd Street in Newell, were seized Wednesday night by the Hancock County Sheriff's Office due to the establishment's lack of a current liquor license.

Sheriff Mike White said the bar previously had a liquor license issued last year that has expired. "As of July 1, they had no license," said White.

White said his office received a complaint earlier this week about the bar operating without a license and contacted the Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission to confirm. The ABCC then sent a written statement that the bar had no liquor license to the sheriff's office, after which deputies were sent to Finish Line to make undercover purchases of liquor and alcohol. A search warrant was then obtained from a Hancock County magistrate to obtain evidence the bar had been operating illegally.

White said the bar has been in operation under different names over a period of years and has been under its current name and ownership for about a year. He said his office has responded to many different calls during the bar's various incarnations, including complaints of disorderly conduct and fights that spill out on the street.

"It's always been a busy spot for us," said White.

Sergeant Chuck Stanley, who is leading the investigation, said that while, technically, all the bar's employees could be charged with aiding and abetting if it was shown they knew Finish Line's license had expired, "The investigation is focusing on the license holder."

"The owners and operators are both responsible under state code," said White.

Stanley said that Finish Line's current owner is unknown at this time but is believed to be a man from New York. The license holder, Paula Bacon, was contacted Wednesday on the phone by Chief Deputy Todd Murray and said she had mailed the license into the state earlier the previous day, but White said it did not matter because the bar was still operating without a license when officers made the undercover purchases.

"We'll have to investigate further to see if there are other violations," said White. During the alcohol seizure, which occurred while the bar was closed, beer bottles were found with store price tags on them, as well as liquor bottles without a state stamp. White said both the price tags and the lack of stamps indicate the alcohol did not come from a distributor, which could constitute a separate charge from operating without a license.

About 25 cases of beer and 65 bottle of liquor were seized as evidence.

Stanley said the first offense of operating without a license is a misdemeanor and the second offense a felony, adding this appeared to be a first offense.