Maplewood Suspends Pub Liquor License for 5 Days

Maplewood Township voted to suspend the liquor license of St. James's Gate Publick House for five days on charges that it failed to comply with inspections of books of accounting.

Acting as the local Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), the Township Committee voted 4-1 to suspend the pub's license from July 15-19, which is a mandatory minimum set by the state. Committee member India Larrier voted against the resolution.

The pub's owner John J. Meade including serving alcohol to a minor. He had initially pled not guilty to all the charges, but changed his plea to guilty on the three bookkeeping charges after reaching a plea agreement with the ABC, said his attorney, Robert C. Williams. 

The charges carried a range of penalties from a fine to the pub's plenary license being suspended for up to 30 days. 

Township Prosecutor Annette DePalma said after an "exhaustive and thorough" investigation by the Maplewood Police Department, which had brought the charges, the state lacked sufficient evidence that would "even come close to meeting the burden of proof" on the charges of serving to a minor and to an intoxicated person.

Township Committeeman Marlon K. Brownlee asked about the timing of the suspension. Township Attorney Roger Desiderio said he wanted to give Meade several weeks to appeal the decision if chose. (Meade can appeal to the state to have the penalty changed to a fine, Desiderio said.)