Cops Crash SUV Into LGBTQ Bar, Arrest Owner For Assault

A bar owner in St. Louis is facing charges following an incident that all started with a police SUV crashing through the front wall of his business around 12:30 a.m. on December 18.

On Track In The 2024 BMW M3 CS | First Drive

A 32-year-old probationary officer who has been on the force for less than a year was traveling northbound on South Broadway in a Chevy Tahoe cruiser, swerved across multiple lanes and crashed into Bar:PM, an LGBTQ bar, just as it was closing for the night, according to the St. Louis Riverfront Times. The initial police report said the officer “believed he was traveling too close to a parked car and attempted to correct himself.”

That’s when, understandably, the bar’s co-owner Chad Morris (who also goes by Chad Wick), allegedly began to “scream obscenities” following the crash, according to police. The officer continued to write that Morris “struck me hard in the chest with an open hand, causing me to temporarily lose my balance.” Even if that did happen, and that’s a big if, I would also be pretty pissed if someone drove into my business.

Anyway, Morris then allegedly tried to flee into a gangway between the bar and another building. In the process, according to the statement, he closed a gate on an officer. He’s now facing a charge of felony assault on an officer and misdemeanor resisting arrest, according to RFT.

Bar:PM’s other co-owner, James Pence, spoke to the outlet and, unsurprisingly, said it was the police who came at bar staff aggressively, and that’s not even taking into account the fact that they crashed their SUV into the building.

Pence told the RFT he was upstairs when the entire building shook due to the crash. He came downstairs to an officer demanding to see his identification. When Pence refused, he was spun around and placed in handcuffs.

As for Morris, Pence said that he was filming the crash scene when three officers “went for him.”

“He raised his arm and they said he hit them,” Pence said.

Pence also said that when the crash occurred, he came downstairs to find an officer demanding to see his identification. When he refused, Pence was spun around and placed in handcuffs, although he was not arrested.

However, Morris was arrested and booked, and he’s now being held without bond.

The St. Louis Riverfront Times also spoke with Javad Khazaeli, Morris’ attorney, who says multiple bystander videos of the crash and its aftermath tell a different story from what police have alleged.

“I’m hopeful that the prosecuting attorney’s office, when they see the evidence that we have, dismisses these charges and hold the police accountable,” Khazaeli told RFT. Fingers crossed, bud.

“They unlawfully handcuffed Mr. Pence,” Khazaeli says. “They falsely claim that speaking loudly is against the law. And they use that as a predicate to arrest Mr. Morris.”

A portion of the bystander video was viewed by the RFT. That portion shows what took place between the crash and prior to Morris’ arrest. It shows Pence being put in handcuffs. At one point, the person filming the video asks what crime has been committed. An unidentified St. Louis Metropolitan Police officer responds, “a disturbance.”

The officer then walks toward the person taking the video and says, “He’s not going to yell at me, that’s causing a disturbance.”

At no time does the 20-minute bystander video show Morris striking an officer in the chest, Khazaeli says.

Khazaeli told RFT that officers were being aggressive with people in the area “to cover up what they did.”