The Safety and Licensing Committee met 12/11/2024. One of the items they took up was the operator/bartender license from an applicant named Crystal. Crystal has two convictions for battery and is currently on probation after having been convicted of possession open intoxicants in a motor vehicle. The committee voted unanimously to deny her license application.
I’ve prepared a transcript of the discussion for download:
Crystal appeared before the committee just a few months ago as one of the people seeking to keep the Corner Pub from losing its alcohol license. Now she appeared before the committee in the hopes of having them approve her operator/bartender license application.
On two separate occasions, she plead no contest to misdemeanor battery charges. Wisconsin state statute 125.04(5)(a)(1) states that license may only be issues to people who do not have an arrest or conviction record. That requirement is subject to various other statutes aimed at preventing employment discrimination. Crystal’s battery offenses violate state statute 940.19(1). Chapter 940 offenses are considered “exempt offenses” which means they are not subject to the employment discrimination exceptions to the requirement that licenses only be issues to people who “do not have an arrest or conviction record”.
Assistant City Attorney Zak Buruin’s legal opinion was that Crystal was not eligible to be granted a license and, under state law, the committee and Council were not permitted to issue a license to her.
Crystal spoke briefly, telling the committee, “I haven’t drank in three years since this incident has happened. I went through AODA assessment. Said that I don’t need anything. I went through some anger management classes and stuff. I am currently on probation. I am almost completed with probation.”
She also shared a letter from her probation officer indicating that she would be discharged from probation on 05/17/2025, has had no known violations of supervision, and is following her deferred judgement agreement.
She asked if there was any time limit to the ban on her being able to receive an operator/bartender license and was told by Attorney Buruin that state statute did not provide a time limit. He did, however, note that she would still be able to work as a bartender without a license as long as there was a license bartender on the premises supervising.
The committee voted unanimously to deny the license.
View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1227017&GUID=E1FFA19B-4922-4618-A273-CC1E8688F269
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