'Unacceptable' fatal shooting inside Highlands bar prompts action by Louisville officials
There's a sign on the door at Café 360: "No firearms or weapons permitted on this property," it reads.
It's a stark reminder of a grim weekend at the 1582 Bardstown Road bar. A man was shot and killed inside the crowded business early Sunday morning — one of five fatal shootings in the city over a 24-hour period — leading officials to take action at the start of the new week.
In a news release Monday, Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said the city's Alcohol Beverage Control board has requested an emergency suspension of Café 360's license in the aftermath of the "unacceptable" shooting, with support from the Highlands neighborhood's commerce guild and Metro Council representative.
“We need all of Louisville to help us by being a part of the solution,” Greenberg said. “By holding those who commit these violent acts accountable, we can make our community safer and protect more lives.”
The man killed in the 3:30 a.m. shooting was later identified as Theodore Brown, 21.
No arrests in the case have been announced by Louisville Metro Police. A department spokesperson on Monday said the homicide unit is "in the early stages of an investigation into this incident" and encouraged witnesses or others with information to reach out through LMPD's anonymous tip hotline online or at 502-574-5673.
Suspending the bar's license with Metro ABC is a short-term step, but Greenberg said he supports other long-term measures to improve safety, as well. He's backing a proposed ordinance from Metro Council members Rick Blackwell and Ben Reno-Weber (who represents the district where the shooting took place) that would let Metro ABC issue emergency license suspensions in cases where public safety is threatened, with a suspension hearing for the licensee to take place within three days.
Under current laws, emergency suspensions are only issued by the Kentucky Department of Alcohol Beverage Control. Louisville's ABC sent that board an emergency suspension request for Café 360 Monday morning, Greenberg said.
In a prepared statement, Blackwell called the ordinance, which has support from Metro ABC, a "promising solution." And Reno-Weber said he hopes to announce additional actions soon.
"These senseless and tragic shootings in the Highlands and Bon Air, as well as those devastating families and neighborhoods across Louisville, only add to the urgency of our efforts to keep our neighborhoods safe from gun violence," he said in the statement.
Reno-Weber helped host a public meeting last August after a shooting outside Afrokanza, a bar that neighbors Café 360. Highlands residents in attendance raised concerns about violence in the community.
Metro ABC announced at that meeting a new policy cracking down on noise violations, while Greenberg suggested reexamining local laws that allow businesses to serve alcohol until 4 a.m. to determine whether to move that time up by two hours later that month following a shooting at downtown's Southern Restaurant and Lounge.
Blackwell said he started working on the ordinance in the aftermath of that shooting. A push by Metro ABC to shut that restaurant down following the shooting was denied, the councilman said, which encouraged him to take action.
"This gives the folks that have to deal with these issues on the local level the opportunity to make the decision on the local level," Blackwell said.
That stretch of Bardstown Road has drawn plenty of negative attention in recent years after "a repeated series of events," Reno-Weber said Monday evening. Progress has been made over concerns about the noise, he said, but city leaders have more of an uphill climb when it comes to curbing violence locally.
"The two big things we heard out of that (August) meeting were noise and violence. We have made tremendous progress on the noise front, working with a lot of good partners and really fostering dialogue and engagement. I feel really good about where we are with that," said Reno-Weber, who took office about a year ago. "Obviously, on the violence front we have made less progress, but we also have fewer tools. ... So, part of this is creating for ourselves the tools that we need."
Reno-Weber said Blackwell was the driving force behind the ordinance. It isn't aimed at hurting businesses, he said, but reducing violence is a "joint objective" between business owners and the community.
In 2021, then-Metro Council member Cassie Chambers Armstrong proposed moving up "last call" for alcohol sales in Louisville from 4 a.m. to 2 a.m. in the aftermath of three homicides along Bardstown Road. Armstrong, who now represents Louisville in the state legislature, amended her ordinance weeks later and removed the change in cutoff time following criticism from several Louisville business owners.
Following Armstrong's proposal, the city published a late-night safety plan for bars in Louisville, with tips and guidelines for promoting public safety.
The shooting Sunday morning at Café 360 was one of several fatal shootings reported over the weekend, with five people killed:
At about 7 a.m. Saturday, LMPD officers responded to a shooting call in the 500 block of S. Fourth Street. One woman was injured, and a man, Larry M. Walker, 24, was killed.
At around the same time, LMPD officers responded to a report of at least one person down in a residence in the 3300 block of Noe Way. A woman, Daryasia Wingo, 21, was pronounced dead at the scene, while a man was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. Police believe all parties are accounted for in that case.
At about 1:30 p.m. Saturday, LMPD responded to a shooting around Del Rio Place and Commander Drive. A man who had been shot was brought to University of Louisville Hospital, where he was pronounced dead Monday night. He has not yet been identified.
At about 9:15 p.m. Saturday, one man was injured and another man who has not yet been identified died following a shooting at Huston Quin Park, in Louisville's Wilder Park neighborhood.
The shooting at Café 360 happened hours later, at about 3:30 a.m. Sunday.
Reach Lucas Aulbach at laulbach@courier-journal.com.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville moves to suspend Café 360 ABC license after fatal shooting
