10-day suspension or $1,000 fine for 202 Market? Put your thoughts here
River Laker
A state Alcoholic Beverage Control hearing officer has ruled 202 Market was guilty of allowing River Laker’s striptease act during a bachelor/bachelorette auction back in February.
The penalty: a 10-day license suspension or a $1,000 fine.
The verdict can be appealed to the full ABC Board, and then to Circuit Court if the owners of 202 Market desire.
I’ve made my thoughts about this clear in the past.
Give us yours, folks.
September 16, 2011 - 3:50 PM
Shoot, 202 will make that much money in a night or two just selling alcohol. The fine is just for show really.
Dan, I read your prior article about the whole silly event and, quite frankly, I disagree. On a personal level, I would’ve just laughed and gone one with my night. I don’t personally care. However, no one would’ve thought this was a cute or clever stunt if a woman had done it, and no one would’ve jumped up in arms to defend her and claim no one should care (IMHO). The bottom line is that, no matter how stupid the whole thing is, a law was actually broken and a penalty resulted from that.
I agree that it was a waste of money to pursue such a stupid infraction of the law, but that’s about as far as I can go. (And I like River just fine…my opinion doesn’t have anything to do with him.)
I already commented about this on another thread. This stupidity by the ABC board qualifies it as a recipient of a Dano award at the end of the year.
Ouch… majorly stupid and heavy handed decision by our State ABC board.
I think the only person that should be fined and/or suspended for this whole thing is Mr. Laker.
I think the ABC penalties are set up in such a way to get license owners to give up since it will be cheaper than fighting in in court. It will cost 202 Market a lot more than $1K to appeal to the full board or civil court, so the easiest solution for them is to simply roll over and give in to the ABC demands.
The fine and let him make out the check. What a tool. And yes, the ABC board is stupid, but I’m the one who doesn’t think the state has any business whatsoever selling alcohol. When you let the state monopolize something like booze, expect to have their stupidity injected into every aspect of it.
Oh well!!!! To bad for their bad luck. Maybe the ABC manager will be more aware of what is going on around them.
I hope River voluntarily reimburses 202 for the 1000.00 fine. If he doesn’t, they should sue him or put him to work washing dishes for a while.
I’d still like to know how he didn’t lose his job with the City for that stunt…if he had worked for me, he’d have been out on his bare ass the day it his the news.
the fact is that this Lake guy is an idiot and full of himself. He should be charge for indecency. What a idiot.
I don’t drink and never have. I don’t hang out at bars and never have. That said, I think 202 Market got the shaft here. They are being punished for the stupidity of someone else. The charity that the event was being held for has also been damaged by this. Is this who Roanoke City wants representing them as a very public employee? Where are the standards of behavior? I mean, every time this guy is mentioned, they also tag on that he is an employee of the city’s library. Now that’s a piece of positive advertising for Roanoke.
He’s an idiot and an attention whore. I’d have fired him too.
In addition to the $1000 if they pay it, they still lose their license for 3 days. So it is more than that.
He was there as an employee of the city of Roanoke. I don’t pay my taxes to the city for some Idiot employee to take his cloths off in public for a name of a charity.
202 Market should sue Mr. Laker for every penny they have spent on this nonsense. If nothing else put him through the hassle and force him to spend his time and money and legal fees. Was Laker charged with public nudity? If not, why not?
I hope 202 files a suite against him for him being so stupid! He needs to also make a public apology to 202 and to other City employees for his actions. Mabye he would not be so “smug”, if he was no longer a City Employee. Yes, he was on his on time but he also represents the City by bosting about where he works! He thinks it was a genius idea? He just wants attention. What part of that striptease was appealing? Did he even raise any money?? Maybe people paid to get his pasty body off the stage!
Big government agency stupidity. Why does this surprise anyone? It’s what big government agencies do.
Judges typically have a substantial amount of discretion…why is all of the focus on the ridiculous behavior of the ABC and none on the judge’s? A judge usually has the power to say, “Yeah, so what?” when presented with a ridiculous case. Couldn’t she have told the ABC that even if everything they allege is true, we’re not going to clog the courts by pursuing this nonsense, and thrown it out? We have plenty of REAL sex crimes (rape, child molesting, etc.) with REAL victims that deserve public resources far more than this victimless, puritanical ridiculousness.
I don’t know River Laker but what he did doesn’t sound bad to me–no one was hurtt, money was raised for a good cause, and people enjoyed the event. What’s bad about that?
I agree, this dirt (Laker) bag should have been fired. And he definitely should be sued by 202 Market for all expenses they have been forced to pay. And it goes without saying that all bars within a 25 mile radius should bar the dimwit!
As self-aggrandizing and attention hungry as he is, he could probably figure out a way to raise the money somehow to reimburse 202. Heck he could probably bring in twice the needed amount just to stay dressed.
wait until you hear his crap music he’s putting out. what a fool and embarrassment.
This should be on River Laker & no the bar.
America in general, and Roanoke in particular, is so uptight and schizophrenic about nudity. Every movie on earth seems to “have” to have a strip club scene–an unrealistic, airbrushed, plastic-surgeried one at that–but actual nudity, just in a natural way, just for a moment, and actually just for a laugh, gets ANYBODY fined? Give me a break.
I can’t understand why someone didn’t stop Mr. Laker for no other reason than nobody WANTED to see him naked. He’s very unattractive.
Of course, as stupid as the ABC is, social conservatives in Virgi8nia generally like it because of its strict rules on alcohol. Git tio keep Demon Rum under control, don’t you know. In fact, the ABC is a construct of the old social and religious conservatives in the Democratic Party, who are now Repubs.
How long is Roanoke City going to continue to spend tax payers dollars on Laker, their out-of-contol employee? How much will his indecent behavior cost the taxpayer’s in the future? Time to man up and fire this fool before it is too late.
Yeah, the ABC is sadly a moral arm of our state gov’t. Their rules and rulings are heavy-handed, with no substance.
As taxpayers, we are paying for agents to go online and surf facebook and twitter posts promoting bars (excuse me restaurants that serve alcohol). Any post with like “beer” and “happy hour” or who market their bar’s alcohol prices or anything of the such, will result in a fine. People have been getting away with this for a while now, but I know of just an establishment that has been a target of harassment by ABC and the Fire Marshal for about 10 years now.
Listen, I’m all for paying taxes. Especially for important services that keep America going. But I do not agree with spending money enforcing an agency that still governs using a puritanical stance such as the VA ABC. Keeping alcohol stuffed in stores that are only open certain hours or days… and obscure stupid rules in restaurants that prohibit multiple drinks in front of a customer, prohibit flaming drinks, and even up until recently, prohibit SANGRIA.
Sadly, there’s not much we can do about these fascists, except distill our own. Get to work Franklin County!
This is wrong to fine the restaurant for conduct that the Square Society and River Laker are responsible for. 202 opens its doors for an auction and gets slapped. We should all go to 202 and show our support for them through this.
Perhaps this little boy should quit trying to get attention all the time, as well as thinking he is so cute doing it. He only does it because he knows his apologists (some on this thread) will defend the indefensible, and feed his ego to do more. This didn’t hurt anyone? Ask the Center in the Square folks, ask 202 about not only the fine and down time, but attorney fees they incurred. I know of a few folks who will not go to CITS fund raisers because of this moron. Will Mr. Laker be responsible for his own actions and repay 202 for what his actions caused? I think we all know the answer to that. Of course not, he is not a responsible person. This is another reason he should not work at his PUBLIC city job. Do you want your kids around an irresponsible, immature, self-aggrandizing hack?
I disagree with the statement that the $1,000 fine was just “for show” as 202 could make it up in one night. The restaurant/bar business is difficult and only they and their accountant know how the fine will impact the business. I also don’t think the onus should be placed on the Judge whose job it is to decide guilt or innocence, not to decide if the matter is frivolous, as in civil cases. I am sure the ABC Board had the discretion to not bring charges and put 202 under some unofficial probation or warning and chose not to. Maybe with all the publicity this received they felt compelled to bring charges? If this had happened at a smaller venue under different circumstances maybe they would not have brought the charges. I don’t know. BTW, 202 is more than a bar/lounge. They have an excellent restaurant, a bit pricey but the food is very good. Unlike the loud bar/lounge area the restaurant has a comfortable, quiet ambiance. A bit pricey but worth it if you can swing it.
http://202market.net/?page_id=300
Bill McLure, you’re wrong. Laker didn’t hurt the bar nor anybody else. The ABC and the judge did. I’ve been in bars before where similar nudity occurred (usually a woman taking off her top) and after her exhibitionism was over, everybody went back to whatever they were doing, completely unharmed.
We get so uptight about body parts in this puritanical region, unless, of course, they’re dismembered body parts flying through the air in some obscenely violent film, which passes for harmless entertainment. Pretty warped priorities, in my opinion.
How much money did they raise?
I agree Bill McClure, he is a hack and an embarrassment
Good on the ABC judge. Laker broke the rules, 202 didn’t do anything to stop him, and they get punished. Now laker needs to be punished for public nudity. The ABC does a good job of keeping bars and restaurants accountable to the standards of the community.
YOU ARE TOTALLY WRONG DAN CASEY AND THE ABC BOARD ARE IDIOTS, I WAS A VOLUNTEER FOR THIS EVENT FOR A WORTHWILE CAUSE. I TRIED SEVERAL TIMES TO GET HIM OFF THE STAGE MYSELF AND SO DID NATHAN, MR. LAKER SHOULD BE SUED FOR THE FINES AND ANY LOST INCOME THIS FINE BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENT HAS INCURRED ….
Pete: First of all, The only bars I ever saw “nudity” in was the ones that advertised it. 202 has NEVER had nudity before since they have not been cited, nor do they advertise as such. You must keep it in perspective Pete, First, 202 was providing a space for an arts fund raiser, a community service. Secondly, 202 is not a strip club, nor a biker bar, nor roadhouse. There obviously was an expectation on the part of 202, and Center in the Square officials of decency and civility, especially at a charity arts fund raiser. This was not wet T shirt night at the Dew Drop Inn. Laker broke the law, as well as did a self aggrandizing, immature, sophmoric act. Why can’t you admit he did wrong. The facts prove he did. The Puritanical rant has nothing to do with anything I posted. He did hurt 202, there were fined and will lose thier license for one of two lengths, and they paid attorney fees for the hearing. I know those costs having been involved in one before. He hurt Center in the Square by people stating publicly they will not go to another fund raiser. The facts prove you dead wrong sir. The ABC and hearing judge only upheld the law that LAKER broke. If he does not strip and appear nude publicly, then we are not even talking about this. It is that simple.
I can only assume that the people behind this action have never compared the teenage pregnancy rate of their town with that of Denmark, or indeed most other countries that don’t get so up tight about the body, and wondered why the difference is so enormous. Attitudes have consequences and every time the law steps in like this it pushes society a little bit further towards prudery and the outcomes that flow from that.
Pete, nudity never hurts anyone else. So why is it a crime to walk around naked? And why is 202 the only ones on the hook… being naked in public is a crime no matter WHERE you are. Remember, this is the country that wet itself over a (gasp) female nipple on television.
If you want to change the laws on public nudity, say so. If you want to get rid of ABC and stop the idiotic VA government monopoly on alcohol salves, then say that too. Otherwise everyone here did precisely what they were supposed to do, except for the fact that Mr. Laker shows his junk in public – where people are trying to eat (yuck…nothing like getting to view some skinny middle-aged white dude’s privates over your overpriced 202 dinner) – and apparently walks scot free.
52 Where’s gdad to blast VRWC for his violation? Oh, that’s right, gdad didn’t say anything about either one of them, did he?
The only thing less appetizing than leftwing men walking around naked would be leftwing women walking around naked.
#38 Slow down, suze. Digital hyperventilation.
“The only thing less appetizing than leftwing men walking around naked would be leftwing women walking around naked.”
Why Suzie, some women like to see hairy, naked, Indian mustachioed, left-wing people walking around. Some of them also like to see the left-wing guys too!
River Laker represents everything Roanoke is becoming.
I think I’d like to see Roger Ailes walking around naked. I’d laugh so hard my sides would ache the next day.
Watch out, Dan. Your lapdog, gdad, will accuse you of sounding a bit homosexual with that last comment.
A couple of weeks ago, I was checking out Facebook one morning before going to work. the first thing I saw was a picture of a guy who is a friend of my youngest brother. He apparently has his settings where anyone can see his pictures. The guy was sitting on his bed holding a handgun in his hand, and there were guns assembled and unassembled spread out all round him.
The guy was wearing nothing but a pair of black underwear and had one leg lifted up and bent, and his body was turned so that his crotch was in your face. It was not a sight I wanted to see early in the morning. Actually it’s not a sight I’d want to see any time of day. When I emailed my brother about his disgusting the picture was, he said the guy goes to his church, and likes to do stuff like that to freak out the church ladies. He and River would make a good pair.
MMM,
Your comment suggest that I am fearful of somebody calling me gay or homosexual or whatever. Another bad assumption.
#43 Now that was totally strange, MMM. Making stuff up again, I see, like when you claimed you never intentionally misspelled anybody’s name.
Stores in Virginia used to cover merchandise with sheets on Sundays to enforce the Blue Laws. This ABC debacle tells me that we haven’t progressed much.
Kristen,
My point is that what this Laker guy did is no worse than what has happened many times in many bars but gets zero publicity. It’s comparable to what happens every day as people drive to and from work at slightly above the speed limit. Technically, you are breaking the law if you drive 1 mph over the limit. Should it get enforced? How about for 5 mph over? How about for 10 over on a clear, low-traffic day on I81 when most traffic is traveling at or above that speed? How about 10 over during a blizzard? Judgment calls are required in law enforcement, and this was a bad call. The worst that came of the offense was that some people were mildly annoyed.
Dan,
Good for you for being secure. Homophobes seem to have a difficult comprehending how you could possibly not be upset by that.
Re: #47
“Stores in Virginia used to cover merchandise with sheets on Sundays to enforce the Blue Laws.”
———-
I can remember a store that had a supply of small paper USA and CSA flags which they would attach (your choice of which flag) to merchandise when you went to check out — as souvenirs were exempt.
The only thing less appealing than either right or leftwing men or women wlking around naked is a right wing woman with her mouth open. That means you can assume she is talking and therefore lies and insults are fouling the air around her.
Pete,my point was that Laker took out his penis in a public place. That’s not a close call. Theres no grey area. I agree that no one was physically hurt, but I’d say that there are many things illegal that don’t cause physical harm.
I’d also wonder what bars you hang in because I can honestly say I’ve never seen a guy drop trou.
I guess I just don’t see this case as *special* because it was River Laker and he’s just a harmless nut. I think American laws and attitudes about the human body are backward. I think that the state selling all the alcohol, and the profitting off perceived misuse of alcohol is backward and constitutes conflict of interest. But as long as all of these conditions exist, 202s being punished is both correct and inevitable.
People in this country are labeled as sex offenders for much less.
Naw, Dan. My comment did not suggest that at all. Simply that gdad, knowingly have shown homophobic tendencies before, may very well say something about it.
Hey parrot, errr gdad, I responded to your false accusation on the other thread.
Hey Pete:
See #35.
MMM,
Anybody who even entertains the possibility that an anonymous blog identity would feel threatened when another anonymous blog identity questions his sexuality has a screw loose. IMHO.
Haha, I’m not threatened in the least bit. When he lied and said I was stating that I am better than anyone at golf (and basketball, and swimming, etc), I first proved that I never said those things then I offered him the chance to show me up at each event.
Yeah, I’m not threatened…
Mark, is your life really boring lately?
btw Mark, My comment asking if your’re bored isn’t meant to be an excuse for Gdad to hurl another insult at you. It’s just that you haven’t commented in months and then you’re back with a vengeance hurling insults/being insulted in kind…
It just doesn’t seem to be a very productive, let alone mature use of time on the part of any of you involved.
#53 I see that you responded to my true post on the other thread by purposely misspelling Brendan’s name again. That’s 5 times now. You continue to lie about this.
#56 MMM needs his diapers changed. Can somebody find his Mom?
Dan, when are you going to do something about gdad continually bringing my present or past family members into these insults he keeps barfing up??
Wasn’t that part of your requirements here? No bringing commenters’ family members into this? Are you going to enforce it?
I simply told exactly what had happened here before, and in all his infinite maturity, he brings up my mom?? What the hell, Dan?
How nice of you to call ME out on this, Debbie. No one else though, huh? Oh, I get it, you expect more out of my comments (which is why you addressed me and no one else).
You know, I probably wouldn’t fit in at a ‘Gonzo blogger’ shindig. I don’t believe in murdering children, I do believe in working for a living and paying the same in taxes as anyone else, and I fully support defending innocent people anywhere on this Earth, not just in my backyard. I would stick out like a sore thumb I’m sure!
#58 Don’t worry, Debbie, I posted back to Mark before I saw your comments, so I wasn’t using yours as an excuse for anything.
Yes, you are right. I should back off of MMM. Posts #53 and 56 and the fact that he disappears for long periods and then blows back in hurling insults indicate to me there’s something other than just an immaturity problem going on with him. Posts 53 and 56 barely even made sense.
The post above signed “Warren” was by another poster, not me; as my address will confirm to Dan, I’m the one who has recently joined the fray here with such posts as the “Mighty Casey” poem, and who does not share the views of the poster above.
As with the case of John and Other John, a common name can be easily repeated. I hope that is the case here. But Dan, as I have only recently begun posting here, and I do not know if there is another poster who uses “Warren”-my real name-as their poster ID, but do wish to avoid being confused for someone else, and especially wish to avoid being intentionally misrepresented by anyone, I hope you’ll tell me if there was already someone regularly using that ID. If not, and if it’s possible, to determine if there is a way to have the addresses checked to confirm that it is not a subterfuge. Thanks.
Warren,
Fyi, I’ve changed the poster’s name to “Another Warren” and emailed him asking that he use that handle to avoid confusion in the future.
Thank you for your participation on this blog.
#61 Umm, MMM, that was your Mom metaphorically speaking, not your actual Mom. Quit whining.
Several months ago I talked with a few of the blog posters I know and we really couldn’t decide whether you are a completely disingenuous trolling games player or just really weird. And we really couldn’t figure out your whole rant then about a family member who they all agreed I did not insult in any way.
Mark, I have called Gdad out more than once, and Steve C too as both can attest to.
As far as I know, there haven’t been any Gonzo shindigs, and I can’t see myself attending any either.
#67 “Mark, I have called Gdad out more than once, and Steve C too as both can attest to.”
True. Heck, I was included in your remark at #58.
That’s great, gdad. BTW, what you and what you consider your ‘blog friends’ think about me hardly means squat. If I want to garner the respect of people who want drugs legalized, people who see no problem with babies being gutted out of their mothers, and lounge lizards who would rather have an welfare check in their hand than a paycheck, I will definitely let you know and you can get on the gonzo-buddy hotline and let everyone know.
You know exactly what post #56 is referring to and I’m sure your knees get wobbly and the seat of your pants get wet when I bring it up, so I do apologize.
An indecent exposure charge against the person who actually stripped would have sufficed. Who appointed ABC as the Morals Police? Why do administrative agencies always push the limits of their authority beyond the breaking point?
#69 Yes, MMM, I remember your juvenile sports challenge. One of the silliest, most childish things ever posted on Dan’s blog. And it had nothing to do with what you and Dan were discussing. Wacky.
Hmmm… SteveC and VRWC challenged each other to a (jog) run up the mountain… and they followed through with it.
Guess both of them were being childish too, gdad??
#72 They went cycling together, MMM. Steve invited anybody who wanted to do so to join him for a ride. It wasn’t somebody challenging another to a competition, the way you did. I’ve invited OJ to join me sometime to bowl a game or two, the same way you all played golf. I wouldn’t be there to beat him or show him up, and it wouldn’t be a series of “contests.”
There’s a difference.
Ehhhh… no comment from gdad whether their challenge and end result was childish. Surprising!!
Actually, gdad, SteveC challenged VRWC and also said he bet that VWRC wouldn’t be able to keep up after a quarter of the way up. VRWC took him up on that and actually accepted.
That, sir, was a challenge… just as was mine to you.
What’s that gdad loves to say sometimes? Crickets?!?
I do need to figure out a time that would work for that gdad, I have league on Sundays and try to get a few games in during the week during my lunch breaks or after work. I haven’t really swung a golf club all year though, much to my chagrin. Only played one round, and didn’t do all that great, not surprisingly. I have found it increasingly challenging to find a 4-5 hour block of time to set aside to play a round, and even some difficulty in getting enough time to just play 9 holes. Definitely bothersome.
#77 Assuming it’s open at lunch, I could meet you sometime at the Squires Student Center bowling alley, which has the cheapest rates around, or at the Christiansburg place, OJ. I’m frequently in the NRV.
The lunchtime rates at the NRV Super Bowl are $3 a game, and they’re running a buy 2 get 1 free special, which is pretty nice. They have a couple leagues for retirees that are on Tuesday and Wednesday so they tend to be pretty busy those days, but there’s still several lanes open. I’m pretty well free any day next week if you’re in the area, I’ll bookmark this thread so I don’t lose track of it. I could also work with Squires, though parking might be a bit hard since they killed the Shultz lot for the Performing Arts Center and I’ve noticed the old Donaldson-Brown lot stays pretty well packed during the daytime. Just let me know!
OJ, this coming week might be tough because of two projects at work but the week after might be better. I have this thread bookmarked.
Ok, that would work too, just let me know what day would work best…I’ve got a fairly flexible schedule I can work with.
202 market never lost there liquor lic.or will they ever. but by this blog being all over the place it has hurt 202s business and with out facts things like this blog should not be reported.when people get facts then they have news to right about….
dan anchor,
I see. So it’s all “this blog’s” fault, eh?