Cops Run Red Light And Crash Into Gay Bar… Then Arrest The Owner For Disturbance!
On December 18, 2023, a police cruiser swerved from the road and crashed into the front of a St Louis gay bar, Bar:PM. The officers behind the wheel were confronted by Chad Morris and James Pence, the owners of the establishment, which resulted in the arrest of Mr Morris for alleged assault and resisting arrest.
New cellphone footage from that night shows the interaction between law enforcement and Mr Pence where the officers on scene handcuffed the bar owner. In the video it appears they asked for his ID and when he refused, the officers handcuffed him for “causing a disturbance”… right after they crashed their car through his building.
Calls for the release of body cam footage have been denied
Following the car crash, police made an official arrest on Chad Morris for felony assault. After the case gained international attention there have been calls from the public for accountability from the police. Official statements have been contradictory with three different reasons provided for the crash.
Official accounts say that after handcuffing Pence, his partner Morris refused to cooperate and then allegedly shoved an officer resulting in his arrest for felony assault. The charge was reduced to misdemeanour assault and the St Louis City Prosecutor’s office are holding firm to their case.
In one statement, officers say they swerved to avoid a dog. The statement then changed to say officers swerved to avoid hitting a parked car causing them to lose control of the vehicle. The public have seen two videos from that night – one from a local business’ surveillance camera showing the police cruiser running a red light. The second video is the cellphone footage from the bystander showing Pence being handcuffed.
Neither video demonstrate any shoving from Morris. Prosecutors have handed over evidence in their case to Morris’ lawyer, Javad Khazaeli, but they have not produced body cam footage yet.
Although the truth in this case is unclear, many people are invested in the details and believe officers exercised an abuse of power. A few things are certain; police crashed into the front of Bar:PM where the owners lived in the apartment above. A confrontation occurred between the owners and the officers. Prosecutors and authorities have not released body cam footage.
