Friday marks the first day of a three-week closure for longtime Chapel Hill bar He’s Not Here.
He’s Not Here ultimately came to an agreement with the North Carolina Alcohol Beverage Control Commission that included offers in compromise from three different violations involving serving alcohol to underage patrons.
The culmination of the punishment from the three agreements included $15,000 in fines – the $5,000 maximum the ABC board can impose on each offense – and a three-week suspension of all alcohol permits.
He’s Not Here and La Res were investigated by officials with the ABC Commission and state Alcohol Law Enforcement agents after a wrong-way crash on I-85 this summer left three people dead.
Records show investigators found that 20-year-old Chandler Kania, who was a student at UNC, was among a group of underage individuals who went to La Res and He’s Not Here on July, 19, 2015. A few hours later, around three o’clock the next morning, Kania drove the wrong-way on I-85 for at least six miles, according to law enforcement, before crashing head-on into another vehicle.
Three of the four passengers in the second vehicle were killed in the crash, including a six-year-old girl.
According to records, Kania’s blood-alcohol content the night of the crash was .17, twice the legal limit to drive in North Carolina.
The original offer in compromise proposed by the ABC Commission was that ownership of He’s Not Here surrender all alcohol permits. Officials with He’s Not Here rejected that deal and the case was set to go before an administrative law judge in late January. Before that hearing, He’s Not Here and the ABC board came to the new agreement.
La Res agreed to an offer in compromise that included a $5,000 fine and a two-week suspension of alcohol permits. The establishment was able to begin serving alcohol again on January 1.
He’s Not Here will be closed until March 4.
Kania is awaiting trial on charges including three counts of second-degree murder. He has been recovering from injuries sustained in the crash at his parents’ home in Asheboro since being released from prison after posting a $1 million bond. He is due back in court on March 8.
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