Pocono News Section

White House Cafe owners in Luzerne County court

White House Cafe owners in Luzerne County court - Monday, May 5, 2008 at 4:32PM EST

Monday, May 5, 2008 @ 04:32pm EST

The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board is ready to go head to head the owners of a troubled Wilkes-Barre bar.

Last year the board told the White House Cafe it would not renew the bars liquor license.

The decision came after several deadly shootings in and outside the bar.

The liquor control board voted down renewing the license after an independent examiner disagreed

The owners of the former White House Cafe on Hazle Street say even if their liquor license is renewed, they have no plans to reopen.

That's because the owners say there was never enough police protection to prevent deadly shootings inside and outside the bar.

3 shot and injured in 2005, 1 man shot dead in January 2006, and another man shot dead in June 2007.

Last year, the liquor control board told the bar's owners that it wouldn't renew their liquor license.

They appealed, and the board still voted them down.

Now the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas could have the final say.

The owners and their lawyer, Sal Cognetti, think an independent examiners paperwork will sway the judges opinion.

An independent examiner, agreed on by both the board and white house cafe owners gave his "recommended opinion."

He says the owners took every step they could to stop violence at the bar.

He found they asked Wilkes-Barre police for a stepped up presence, installed surveillance cameras, and wanded people as they entered the bar.

The report also says the owners voluntarily shut their bar down, something a deadbeat bar owner wouldn't do.

The owners and their lawyer tell WBRE news they're not sure what will be done with the old White House Cafe building.

They'll only say it won't be a bar as long as they own it.