St. Mary’s Alcohol Board finds violations at Butler’s Place, orders suspensions after June 28–29 incidents

The St. Mary’s County Alcohol Beverage Board on Thursday found that two late‑June incidents at Butler’s Place threatened the peace and safety of the community and voted to suspend the bar’s liquor license: a three‑day suspension for the June 28 incident and a concurrent 30‑day suspension for the June 29 incident.

The board’s action followed a formal hearing in which multiple St. Mary’s County sheriff’s deputies described large, disorderly crowds, objects hurled at officers and a shooting that sent a man to St. Mary’s Hospital. Deputy First Class James Stone, the sheriff’s office alcohol enforcement coordinator, testified that he considers Butler’s Place a “threat, danger, or harm to promoting the peace or safety of the community.”

The hearing focused on two separate allegations: a disorderly crowd and physical altercation in the parking lot on June 28, 2009, and a disorderly crowd and a shooting in the parking lot on June 29, 2009. The sheriff’s witnesses said the June 28 arrest of Sheila Juanita Somerville prompted a crowd that surrounded officers, hurled rocks and bottles and required officers to deploy OC (pepper) spray.

Corporal Handy (St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office) told the board he was “surrounded” by about 10–12 people near him and estimated that the overall parking lot crowd later grew to “probably a hundred plus people.” He described being concerned for his safety as he tried to place Somerville into a patrol…