Residents concerned, have questions after man was shot dead outside downtown bar with history of violence nearby
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A downtown bar is at the center of a controversy once again, following a shooting near the business.
A man was shot and killed Sunday morning outside Persona Lounge, at 408 S. Wells St. at Van Buren Street. Another man has now been charged in the shooting.
As CBS 2's Marybel González reported, this was not the only fatal incident at the bar in recent months.
So far this year, at least three people have been killed due to gun violence near Persona Lounge. The bar's owners closed this summer to address the issue, but it was back open Sunday for an event.
Now, the latest shooting has some asking if it could have been prevented.
Early Sunday morning, police said a 38-year-old man was shot outside Persona Lounge following a fight.
On July 2, two men were killed and three others were wounded following a mass shooting involving people who got into a quarrel upon leaving the very same bar.
In May, three others were injured in another shooting there.
"The pattern of violent incidents really had a lot of residents concerned," said Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th).
Back in August, Sigcho-Lopez said he met with police and the city's office of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection. The agencies have the authority to shut down a business if there are safety concerns.
"The owners agreed voluntarily to close down - and to resubmit a new concept or a new license permit - so that the business in itself would have changed to address the concerns," Sigcho-Lopez said.
But the business is still open. We reached out to owner Reginald Marsh.
In a statement, Marsh said Persona Bar no longer exists, but they still have a license to operate. Early Sunday, he said, there was a private event there.
Marsh said the shooting happened when a security guard fired his gun at another member of security, and it had nothing to do with those attending the event.
Ald. Sigcho-Lopez, meanwhile, says the recent shooting highlights a greater issue – what he says are disparities in enforcement because the bar is located downtown.
"This is an unfortunate issue that we see more and more common when we have different rules for different people, and also the fact that we're not acknowledging the serious issues as we should to prevent, again, more tragedies," he said.
The man who was killed was shot in the chest and was pronounced dead at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. He has not been identified.
At the scene, officers took a suspect into custody and transported him to Rush University Medical Center for minor injuries. The suspect, Devontrell Turnipseed, 23, of the Near North Side, has now been charged with first-degree murder.
The alderman said he has reached out to BACP and the CPD to find out why the business was allowed to reopen. We have also contacted the departments and were waiting to hear back late Monday.