Mayor’s request to delay liquor license vote overruled

When a fatal car accident takes place in New Jersey, the fallout from the accident can last for years. Obviously, the family members of those who are killed or injured will feel the repercussions for the rest of their lives; in addition, if a tavern or other establishment had a role in overserving a patron who is involved in a fatal drunk driving accident, that can keep the case in the public eye for some time — and serve as a reminder of the crash.

A fatal accident last year grabbed headlines when a woman had apparently been drinking all day before getting into a head-on collision; she was killed, while the driver of the other car suffered serious injuries. The woman was at a bar in Point Pleasant Beach; lawsuits that are now pending say that the bartenders overserved the woman, who was visibly intoxicated.

An autopsy performed on the woman’s body showed that she had a blood alcohol content of more than twice the legal limit, at 0.189. She also had no food in her stomach at the time of the accident.

The woman actually wasn’t driving her own car at the time of the fatal crash. Parking attendants routinely told patrons to leave their keys in the ignition of their vehicles; the woman was able to get into a car that looked like hers and take off.

The borough’s mayor wanted the council to delay a vote on renewing the bar’s liquor license, but the council declined; the license was renewed by a unanimous vote.

Source: NJ.com, “Citing fatal accident, beach mayor objects to renewal of Martell’s liquor license,” Anthony G. Attrino, June 3, 2014