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Club 2:K:9 Owner Charged with Police Assault; Liquor License Suspended

By Amber Mobley, Staff Writer, The District Chronicles, Howard University
(3/14/02)

A disturbance between patrons of the local nightclub 2:K:9 led to the arrest of the club�s owner, a later suspension of the club�s liquor license and the club�s closing by the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration Board.

On the night of March 2, Derek Owens, owner of the 2:K:9 Club and University Citi Caterers, was arrested for disorderly conduct and assaulting a police officer. The following weekend, the club�s liquor license was suspended and the establishment closed because of the incident.

D.C. Metro Police claim that Owens threw a punch and repeatedly hit one of the arresting officers while he was attempting to stop the arrest of a patron. Owens and his attorneys are filing a suit against the D.C. Metro Police claiming that the police used unnecessary excessive force on Owens.

"They didn�t question or arrest the man they originally came across the street to see," said Stephen D. Johnson, the attorney representing Owens.

Owens claims that as he attempted to explain to metro police officers that one of the men in the dispute was hosting a private party at the club, the officers grabbed him and shoved him toward the brick fa�ade of the club.

"As they shoved (Owens) he fell into an officer, knocking her (Officer Keisha Rogers) into the wall and they call that an assault on an officer or a charge of opposing arrest," said Johnson.

Owens� lawyer is looking into suing the Metropolitan Police.

"The police department is acting like vigilantes and this is troubling to me," Johnson said. "We�re talking about police power and abuse of it.

I thought we�d put this kind of thing behind us."

The officers present that night have a different point of view. Officers testified yesterday at a hearing concerning the license. They said that Owens disobeyed police commands by standing in between the patron to be arrested and the officers. Rogers testified that she was "pushed," "struck on the right side of the face," "hit a few more times" and "rammed into the wall" by Owens as he resisted arrest.

Officer Willie Barnes testified that Owens shouted disrespectful words at the police and threw a punch at Rogers.

Owens sustained injuries to his chest and back and was taken to the 3rd District Police Station where he was charged with assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. He then posted bail and was released later that night.

Rogers testified that she experienced dizziness and blurred vision that night and since then has had aches and pains in her back and arm. She was been on sick leave since the incident. This incident led to 2:K:9�s liquor license being suspended.

Last Friday at 6:10 p.m. the Alcohol Beverage Regulatory Agency served Owens with a note of "summary suspension," which does not allow him to sell liquor.

"First they said the license was suspended and then they said, �you know what, don�t even open up,�" Owens said.

The order not to open wasn�t written, yet there were police officers present at the club to reinforce the club�s closure.

In an instance such as this � involving the assault of an officer and the business owner being arrested � the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration Board does have the power to close an establishment. In a normal case, only the chief of police would have that power.

Owens� arrest and the club closure were a surprise to [Advisory] Neighborhood Commission 1B representative Lawrence Guyot.

"There�s no way this can be justified," he said. "ANC 1B will be vigilant in its support for this establishment."

Although local students know 2:K:9 as a dance club, the club also hosts neighborhood committee meetings. The Tuesday before the incident the police held a special event at the club.

2:K:9 reopened last Saturday and will function without the liquor license until further notice.