Bayonne council overturns denial of ABC bar permit for Michelle Solar

Bayonne City Municipal Council on Sept. 10, 2025, reversed a prior denial and granted an appeal by Michelle Solar of an ABC bar permit denial.

Council members heard from Solar, reviewed two letters of support from her employer and a letter from the Deputy Attorney General, and received a brief statement from police licensing staff. Solar told the council that she had been arrested in the past but said she was not convicted of “a crime involving moral turpitude,” and that many charges had been dismissed. “I was arrested. That is true. Right. But I was not found guilty of a crime involving moral turpitude,” Solar said during the hearing.

Detective Lieutenant Pletchoy, speaking for the police department’s licensing unit on behalf of Chief Keiser, told the council the department had no additional material to add and reminded the council that the Attorney General’s office plays an advisory role. “The AG has an advisory role, not so much a directive in regards to the issuance of the work permits,” Pletchoy said. He also said that under city rules the final decision rests with the public safety director, the police chief and the municipal council on appeal.

Council members said they had reviewed the submitted materials and that several were willing to give Solar a second chance; the transcript records the council’s decision as overturned but does not record a roll-call tally for that specific appeal. The record shows the council received the applicant’s statements, the letters of support and the police statement before announcing the outcome.

The council’s action removes the earlier denial and allows Solar to proceed with the ABC bar permit process as of the Sept. 10 meeting. The transcript does not specify any conditions attached to the grant or further administrative steps required.