Police inspecting Pulse nightclub found the bar was “grossly overcrowded” and held at least half a dozen underage drinkers.
That was the result of a surprise inspection last Thursday at the Temple Street club, according to police spokesman Officer Dave Hartman. It was the latest of several incidents this month related to the New Haven nightlife spot.
Here’s what happened, according to Hartman:
Last Thursday, police teamed up with state liquor control agents for a night of safety inspections. The group headed first to Pulse, a nightclub that opens onto Temple Street Plaza.
With the recent start of the semester at local universities, police have seen “a familiar increase in rowdy behavior, disorderly conduct and fights,” Hartman said. While some of the larger clubs on Crown Street have closed, the crowds haven’t diminished, only shifted to smaller venues, he said.
“The epicenter of chaos has moved from Crown Street to the [Temple Street] courtyard,” according to Lt. Rebecca Sweeney, downtown’s top cop, Hartman said. “Pulse nightclub is the only such establishment that empties to the courtyard, and with a 306-room luxury hotel across the street and high-end apartments surrounding the block, the complaints of excessive noise and bad behavior are called in regularly.”
On Thursday night, seven cops and five liquor agents entered the courtyard for the inspection. They found that a fenced-off area outside the club was packed with people.
“The team controlled the entry way as agents and officers went inside,” Hartman said. “About a half-dozen underage drinkers were confronted almost immediately and agents noticed Pulse staff members, mostly from the security team, taking drinks from the hands of patrons as they moved through the crowd. It was obvious the club was grossly overcrowded. As the lights went up and the music was turned down, patrons began heading to the exit doors.”
The team of cops decided to ditch the inspection and just focus on getting people out of the club. They moved people off a second-floor balcony and cleared the basement.
The inspection team then moved to the Lazy Lizard at 201 Crown St., where it found and detained at least two underage drinkers.
Shots Fired
Thursday’s inspection at Pulse came the night after police responded to a report of a fight involving gunshots at the club. They found a 27-year-old man who had been stabbed.
He was taken to the hospital, where he was listed in stable condition. Cops found no physical evidence of gunfire.
The stabbing victim was later arrested for criminal impersonation. He had given cops his brother’s name because he was on parole. When he found out he would be arrested for an outstanding warrant on his brother, he confessed his real identity.
The stabbing incident was “was the second large fight at Pulse nightclub in a couple weeks and the second significant assault since September 7th,” Hartman said.
Hartman said he recently addressed a group of about 50 students at Southern Connecticut State University, as part of a panel on drinking laws and staying safe downtown. He said he and Office Matthew Abate also recently gave a presentation on nightlife safety to a group of downtown business owners at the Omni Hotel.
For block-by-block year-to-date crime info, check the Independent’s crime map.