Kamenetz: Recher Responsible for Altercation Outside Towson Business
Officials say investigation could result in a liquor board hearing and sanctions against the business' liquor license.
Photos
UPDATED (7:51 p.m.)—Owners of the Recher Theater in Towson are responsible for an altercation early Sunday that resulted in the arrests of seven people, County Executive Kevin Kamenetz said Tuesday.
"There is nothing wrong with downtown Towson," Kamenetz said. "There is nothing wrong with the vast majority of the businesses that operate in in downtown Towson. There's nothing wrong with our college students—particularly Towson University."
"I really lay the blame on one particular operator here who delegated responsibility to some third-party promoter and I've got a real problem with that because they have a liquor license and they have responsibility to maintain not only order within their premises but those who are outside their premises who are there because of the event they are promoting," Kamenetz said.
Kamenetz and police Chief Jim Johnson criticized the owners of the Recher Theater and their handling of a private event at the club that ended in a fight outside.
Johnson said police were already patrolling the area in larger numbers because of homecoming activities at Towson University.
"We were well aware there were univeristy events and officers were in place to deal with that evening," Johnson said, adding that no students from Towson were involved in the incident.
"Only one individiual identified himself as a college student," Johnson said."We do not believe that it had anything to do with Towson University homecoming festivities."
Johnson said he did not know what college the person attended.
Kamenetz said many of those who attended the event at the Recher Theater Saturday and early Sunday "were from outside the Baltimore metropolitan area."
Johnson said promoters of the event directed people to Towson via social media when other events they had planned that night "did not develop."
Johnson declined to name the promoter of the event, said to be Theta Mu Mu chapter of Omega Psi Phi fraternity, a post-collegiate group not directly affiliated with any university.
Police continue to investigate the incident, Johnson said, and added that such incidents in Towson are relatively rare.
Kamenetz said the conclusion of the investigation could result in the police forwarding the case to the Baltimore County Liquor Board Commission.
Despite the incident Sunday, officials said concerns about Towson being unsafe are unwarranted.
"We're very confident that an incident like this will not repeat itself," Johnson said.
A test of those words could come as soon as tomorrow.
An event called Barstool Blackout was scheduled for tomorrow evening at the bar. Promoters announced on their website that they were postponing until a later date due to the brawl. The event attracted students from Towson University last year and is sold out this year.
M. Sullivan
2:21 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
First time I agree with KK!
JDStuts
3:07 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Smells like scapegoating for the po-po getting caught off guard. In their defense what else could have the police done other then react as they did.
KK is looking to make some cheap press. In short order someone is going to mention the Best Buy stampede case as the basis for these actions.
number9dream
3:14 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
The Recher is some pretty valuable real estate...
D Schmid
3:35 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
I live across from the patio in back of the Recher. There are frequent fights in the parking lot, where you can find plenty of liquor bottles and plastic cups, not to mentioned the smashed windows on the side of the building and across the street. They turn up their sound system in the back patio so that it can be heard in front of the building to draw more people in. They need their own security and also need to clean up the area around the place.
M. Sullivan
3:54 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Funny, how the Greene Turtle, Souris', Charles Village Pub, Hightopps, etc. don't seem to have such problems.
N Thom
9:28 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
I work in Towson and live in the Towson area. The drunk people going through the parking lot behind the Recher are not just patrons of the Recher. They go to the Green Turtle, CVP, Lil Dicky's, Souris and every other bar in Towson. It's the only large free lot that exists in Towson; everyone parks there. It is the same clientele in every bar in Towson...drunk college kids! Who...guess what? drink in parking lots and leave their trash behind.
jackblasio
12:19 am on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
I agree that Recher's may need to beef up their own security because they have the largest facility. However, I believe that N Thom is totally correct about the diversity of the patrons, going to places other than Recher's. Perhaps an attendant or two for the free parking and/or security is in order for at least Friday and Satuday evenings, to curb the fighting and drunk driving as well....Recher's has been there for what? a decade! They've had national acts as well as great local bands, pretty much without incident 'til this! I honestly believe that they shouldn't receive sole responsibility for this mishap, all in all, they seem to be a decent proprietor. After all, Towson is the first place out of the city line that has a night-life, also college people looking to get a break [by partying], so a decade [more or less], without much incident is in Recher's favor!
Needaname
7:50 am on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
The police should park themselves in the parking lot and bust their butts. The rear parking lot behind the Recher is a real money maker for the county. Think of all the money Baltimore County can collect in fines for driving while intoxicated !
Roger
3:58 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
It's always about money.
Needaname
5:17 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
I TOTALLY blame the Fraternity. They publicized this event. Who in the world will be willing to have the same problem repeated in their own establishment. Way to go Frat Guys !
jackblasio
1:30 pm on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
I agree...the more I read about this, the more it looks like it's the "3rd party [unnamed] promoter" that is at the very core of the mob's anger...wasn't he paid? KK's gavel came down swiftly and unfairly on Recher's head!!! Mr. Recher closed the doors after capacity crowd was reached...that was the right thing to do! He cannot possibly be responsible for the actions of those groups of people that felt "justified" by carrying-on like a bunch of rabid mad dogs....KK was apparrently un-informed...He's the man-on-the-scene with an instant on-the-job speech condemning an innocent man! How about castigating the uncivilized behavior of those that damaged property and spilled blood!!!
Fire Kevin Kamenetz
6:16 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
What a joke. What happens outside of a bar should be indicative of how the bar is run or what type of person the owner is. What happened happened on the streets of Towson which should be patrolled by the Towson police department.
If there is a finger to point, let them point it at themselves for not being prepared for a large home coming crowd. Also how do 2500 people just magically appear without and police noticing. On any given Friday or Saturday evening Towson has police on every corner. How could they been caught by surprise on home coming weekend.
moe green
7:05 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Kamenerz and his gelding police chief are afraid to identify the real villains. The black fraternity and their thug members.
The rioters should have been met with overpowering force. And the where are the black leaders condemning the thugs actions?
At home writing checks to al sharp ton.
Needaname
7:46 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Sad but true. It makes you wonder if they are just trying share their 'bounty' with the rest of Baltimore Co.
Stewart G
7:09 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
KK seems to be throwing the Recher family under the bus. Considering how much money and time they have put into growing their businesses and their family's long time commitment to Towson, it seems to me that another tactic could have been taken without condemning the Recher family without all the facts. Leave the investigation to the police, the Recher Theater is a valuable asset to Towson, maybe they should just reconsider their rental policy.
Needaname
7:53 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Are they going to close down Towsontown Mall because they attract the loud, obnoxious, scantly clad people on Friday and Saturday nights to the Mall ? There is NO MOB control, just a group of people who allow the Police on site to have control for the evening. Those people fight, shoot patrons and each other, and create a negative atmosphere.
jackblasio
12:25 am on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
It makes me wonder at what point does the community of lawbreakers become responsible!
Fire Kevin Kamenetz
7:17 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Amen Stewart.
Stan Modjesky
8:07 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Towson has become the new Fell's Point.
Needaname
7:55 am on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
I have never felt unsafe in Fells Point. I live in Towson and there have been nights where I had felt a creepy vibe.
jackblasio
1:48 pm on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
As an ex-cabbie for Towson [10yrs], it was a mixed bag-o-nuts! Worse now...I felt the safer fares were at Hillendale,Timonium, and west [north] of Towson...daytime panhandlers/cig-bummers etc...
Steve Kolbe
8:00 am on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
So much investment is going into this renaissance in Towson. Many different stakeholders are working together to bring businesses and patrons back into our community. Meanwhile, in response to this incident that is so clearly a failure to keep the peace, Johnson and Kamenetz have nothing to offer but finger pointing and blame. I am not falling for those tactics. Our chief executive and chief of police failed to do their job.
As a Towson resident, I often bear witness to the Friday and Saturday night festivities which take place and have long felt the police presence was inadequate to the point of negligence. Perhaps our chief executives will see this as a teachable moment and support our businesses and our guests by stationing the appropriate resources at the appropriate times.
Parkvillehoney
12:10 pm on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Steve, maybe this is the push Baltimore County leaders and police needed before an incident turned into a fatality. We need more bike and walking police officers in business areas. I think visible police presence will prevent a lot of troublemakers from acting out.
M. Sullivan
8:34 am on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Pretty soon, they'll need guard towers, like Mondawmin Mall. I bet that "clothing drive" was just a hip-hop concert disguised as a charitable event. These types of concerts always seem to require heavy security and often end in shootings. I wonder why?
JD1
8:43 am on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
What happened to personal responsibility? Why is the bar being blamed for the behavior of adults? I have experienced numerous crowds in Towson, but never witnessed individuals actually assaulting police officers because they we so irate because they couldn't get into an establishment. Sounds like the behavior is more a reflection on the culture and choices of the perps and not on the host establishment. But of course, we can't mention that at a press conference now can we.....
Sam
9:39 am on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Towson is still a safe area - it was just a poor decision made on an already hectic night. The Recher should have known better than to host another fraternity party on the same night as Towson Universitys Homecoming. But, they had no idea that this frat was going to bring an influx of several hundred people. They can only contain the event within the theatre. There was really nothing they could do about the several hundred students outside the theatre who were brawling and bashing in cars. The police should have acted more quickly to respond to this. Pepper spraying the back entrance of the bar at 1:00am was not the right solution. The Recher and the Police should have taken action for reinforcement long before it got that out of control.
Needaname
7:55 am on Thursday, September 27, 2012
What ? 'The Recher should have known better than to host another fraternity party on the same night as Towson University's Homecoming ?' This is not Thug-son, it is Towson - why should anyone have to adhere to a THUG MENTALITY. HERE IS A SOLUTION - GROW UP PEOPLE !!!
VWK
9:55 am on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Excellent comment JD1!
nd
11:39 am on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
I'd rather step over a beer can or two than be shot. Towson is disgusting, just an extension of the city. Drive by the mall on any given night or look at the bus stops.
Steve williams
9:54 pm on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
To Steve Kolbe, was it also a teachable moment when you decided to break the law. How can you possibly write about keeping peace when your action were anything but,remember you purposely broke the law. You got the pub, you kissed the ring of robo bob and were rewarded with your current position. Before you lecture anyone about keeping peace I suggest you reimburse the county for their expenses incurred by your ridiculous lawsuit. Please send your money in then you can comment about keeping peace.
Steve Kolbe
10:28 pm on Wednesday, September 26, 2012
I have a megalomaniacal streak which led me to intentionally break the law, just so I could seize a negative income, volunteer position as a leader in a minority political party… riiiight.
Uninformed and childish attempts to assassinate my character aren't going to stop me from standing up for the things I believe in, they aren't going to make me stop caring about our community and the people in it, and they certainly don't change the fact that I'm right about the failure of leadership this week.
Steve williams
2:58 pm on Thursday, September 27, 2012
Mr. Kolbe, you are so witty and yes what you say in the first line is true. Please tell Patch readers where the character assassination is. Did you not intentionally break the laws, you neighbors certainly thought you did, and the county proved it in court. Did you not sue the county knowing it was a ridiculous lawsuit? Was it not dismissed totally? Did the county have to waste time and taxpayer dollars defending your frivilous suit? Did you not receive tv and print coverage,standing with robo bob and did you not parlay that into the heard of the republicans? Please explain top Patch readers what's incorrect. When you reimburse the county for their expenses then and only then should you have anything to say about keeping peace.
Steve Kolbe
9:41 pm on Friday, September 28, 2012
Steve, if I was the evil political operative you suggest I am, then instead of burning thousands of dollars of my own money in legal fees, I would have simply called in the hundreds of signs for Democrat candidates in the county (yes I photographed a lot of signs as part of the case) that were in violation, to have them taken down.
I wasn't helping Republicans. Everyone who lives here knows that, come election time in a gubernatorial year, there are many more signs for Dems than there are Republicans and a change in the law would have accrued benefits accordingly. My fight was for equal rights and equal enforcement for EVERYONE. In fact, there were two Kamenetz signs, a Fusco sign, plus a variety of other non-political signs that were in violation of the same size restriction within 500ft of my home at the time I was cited. They were up before I was cited, and they were up after I took my sign down.
My efforts still made an impact. The county now only enforces sign violations when there is a citizen complaint. It's not what I had hoped for but it's still a step in the right direction. Other counties like Howard ceased enforcement on political signs altogether... even better!
Anyway, it came out in court documents that elements of the Smith administration coordinated to have my sign taken down. So, if you want to direct your anger against wrongdoing, arrogance, and corruption, that's where you should focus, not on a private citizen who stood up for his beliefs.
Buck Harmon
4:43 pm on Saturday, September 29, 2012
Kamenetz is playing the Towson political mouth piece game...nothing more. Had this situation occurred in most other Baltimore Co. towns nothing would have been said by him. The politics of Towson are at play here....nothing more, nothing less.
Another bad job KK...
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