Stabbing Leaves Thirsty Turtle's Fate Unclear

University Police Chief David Mitchell took a strong stand against the Thirsty Turtle Tuesday afternoon, saying that the bar's lax attitude toward underage drinking will not be tolerated.

The statement was made during a press conference scheduled to address the stabbing that occurred early Monday morning as the result of a fight that originated at the Thirsty Turtle. Of the four victims involved, three were University of Maryland students under the age of 21, all of whom were drinking at the Thirsty Turtle when the fight erupted.

The Thirsty Turtle has received three citations from the Liquor Control Board in the last two years, Mitchell said, one of which was issued last month after two student police aides gained access to the bar despite showing driver's licenses indicating that they were under 21.

"The Thirsty Turtle has become an attractive nuisance," Mitchell said. "We're not out here to take any action that's going to have an adverse economic impact on this city — unless you're doing it at the detriment of my students. This we will not stand for."

A hearing to address September's case is scheduled for November, but county liquor board inspector John McGroarty said it could happen sooner if an emergency liquor hearing is deemed necessary. Mitchell said he planned to push for the hearing to take place in the coming weeks.

"I'm ready to padlock it tonight," he said. "But it's not my call."

The other two bars in the area — Cornerstone Grill and Loft and RJ Bentley's — were also given a so-called "integrity test," but passed when they turned the students away, Mitchell said. The only other bar in the area to be issued multiple citations in a two-year span was the former Santa Fe Café, which shut down last May after it failed to install a sprinkler system.

Neither Mitchell nor McGroarty could confirm whether this incident — which will likely bring the Thirsty Turtle's total number of citations to four — will be sufficient to suspend the bar's liquor license. Though Mitchell acknowledged that he would close the bar were it up to him, its owner, former city council member Alan Wanuck, has a right to due process.

"It's not a unilateral act," he said. "They have a right to be heard."

However, Mitchell's sentiments toward the Thirsty Turtle are clear.  

"This is not being a good neighbor to the university," he said. "And they are not friend of any UMd. student engaging in this behavior."