MACON, Ga. — Two downtown Macon bars remain unable to sell alcohol after a downtown shooting nearly two weeks ago.
Sheriff David Davis suspended the alcohol licenses at Recess and Hoops for up to 90 days, citing evidence the bars may have had something to do with it.
Matrix Drafts at Recess says she's rarely had a problem with a customer in her nine years running the place. She says she's never been shut down. Drafts watched security camera video
Thursday of the moment shots rang out on Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. Aug. 20.
Drafts didn't know it then, but those gunshots marked the beginning of uncertainty at her business.
"I got a call from Sheriff Davis saying I was getting served a 90-day suspension," Drafts explained.
Sheriff Davis says their evidence showed the fight that killed Robert Evans could have started inside one of the bars.
"Video evidence that we had found tended to indicate that two bars may have been open or may have been operational," Davis said.
Davis says the shooting happened around 3:45 a.m. That's 45 minutes after bars are allowed to be open in Macon-Bibb County. Drafts say she did nothing wrong.
"I might have had six or seven customers that night. Those guys did not patronize my business," she said.
Sheriff Davis says some new evidence could prove that and show the bars closed on time that night. He says the county administration has heard the bars have a history of staying open late.
"I'm looking sort of specifically at this event that we're investigating now," Davis said.
Drafts say this leaves her business in jeopardy and her staff outraged.
"They called me before I could even call them. 'This is crazy.' They're angry. Yeah. They feel slighted," Drafts said.
Sheriff Davis says he plans to turn over any findings from his investigation to the county commission. They'll make the final decision about the alcohol licenses. Davis says they will take a more holistic approach when determining what happens.