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Drinkery re-opens after liquor board reversal

‘A great day for Mount Vernon’

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The Drinkery, gay news, Washington Blade
The Drinkery, gay news, Washington Blade

Baltimoreā€™s Drinkery has re-opened. (Photo by Steve Charing)

Just two weeks after the Baltimore City Board of Liquor License Commissioners voted 2-1 to close The Drinkery, a gay bar in the Mount Vernon neighborhood, the decision was reversed on June 2.

Those protesting the license renewal at the hearing on May 19 complained about alleged rowdiness, excessive noise, drug activity and violence in and around the establishment, which has operated for 44 years. This was presented through a signed petition; letters sent to the board by residents, nearby businesses and local politicians; and testimony at the hearing.

Commissioners Dana Peterson Moore and Albert J. Matricciani had voted not to renew The Drinkeryā€™s liquor license; Aaron Greenfield voted for renewal.

In declaring her vote then, Moore stated, ā€œWhat matters are the factsā€ and cited ā€œcontempt by the owner toward the community.ā€

However, it was Moore who reversed her decision on June 2 following a motion for reconsideration by The Drinkeryā€™s 87-year-old owner Frederick Allen.

According to the Baltimore Sun, ā€œAllenā€™s motion noted that Jason Curtis, who signed a petition and testified against the Drinkery in the May 19 hearing, is listed on the liquor license of another Mount Vernon establishment, Hotel Indigo. The boardā€™s rulesĀ specify thatĀ a protest against a licenseĀ renewal can be signed by ā€œresidents,Ā commercial tenants (who are not holders or applicants for a liquor license), or real estate owners in the immediate vicinity of the licensed place of business.ā€

The Sun stated that Curtisā€™ failure to disclose his liquor license was sufficient to change the boardā€™s mind. Curtis, who was the former president of the Mount Vernon-Belvedere Association that led the effort to prevent The Drinkeryā€™s license renewal and in 2012 ran unsuccessfully to be the first openly gay man to be elected to the City Council, did not respond to a request from the Blade for comment.

The Community Law Center, which represented the MVBA in its efforts against The Drinkery, could appeal the decision, according to the Sun.

News of the reversal was welcomed by many in Baltimoreā€™s LGBT community. ā€œThis is a great day for an inclusive Mount Vernon, Mark McLaurin, a Baltimore resident and a frequent patron of The Drinkery, told the Blade. ā€œSpecial thanks to Commissioners Moore and Greenfield for being willing to reconsider a hastily reached decision.ā€

Another customer, RJ Ladd, lamented the loss of gay bars in Baltimore. ā€œIā€™m glad that the liquor board reconsidered the matter. Our gay bars are a dying breed. Letā€™s keep the remaining few around,ā€ he said.

The Drinkery re-opened on Saturday at 11 a.m. to much relief and jubilance by its patrons.

However, there had been considerable disquiet and finger pointing following the initial vote to close the bar. Community members were angry that three gay men testified to close the longtime gay establishment.

ā€œThe gay men who organized the efforts to close The Drinkery created a lot discord and distrust in the community,ā€ activist Brian Gaither told the Blade. ā€œTo get their way they exploited anti-gay prejudice in a way that undermines decades of work by activists in the city. The whole thing is shameful and appalling.ā€

In a statement dated June 6, the Mount Vernon Belvedere Association explained the rationale for their protest of the license renewal.

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Maryland

Former College Park Mayor Patrick Wojahn disbarred

One-time official serving 30-year prison sentence for child pornography possession, distribution

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Patrick Wojahn (Mugshot courtesy of the Prince George's County Police Department)

Patrick Wojahn, the former mayor of College Park who resigned after law enforcement executed a search and seizure warrant and discovered a ā€œvery large quantityā€ of child sexual abuse material on his cellphone, has agreed to be disbarred in Maryland.

Wojahn, 49, a Democrat who served as mayor from 2015 to 2023, later pleaded guilty in Prince Georgeā€™s County Circuit Court to 140 counts of possession and distribution of child pornography and was sentenced to 30 years in prison ā€” plus five years of probation.

In an order on Friday, Maryland Chief Justice Matthew J. Fader granted a joint petition for disbarment by consent and noted that Wojahn agreed that his actions constituted professional misconduct.

The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

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District of Columbia

Sentencing for Ruby Corado postponed for second time

Former Casa Ruby director pleaded guilty to wire fraud

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Ruby Coradoā€™s sentencing is now scheduled for April 29. (Washington Blade file photo by Ernesto Valle)

The sentencing in D.C. federal court for Ruby Corado, the founder and executive director of the now-defunct LGBTQ community services organization Casa Ruby on a charge of wire fraud, has been postponed for the second time, from March 28 to April 29.

A spokesperson for U.S. District Court Judge Trevor N. McFadden, who is presiding over the case, said it was the judge who postponed the sentencing due to a scheduling conflict. The earlier postponement, from Jan. 10 to March 28, came at the request of Coradoā€™s attorney and was not opposed by prosecutors with the Office of the U.S. Attorney for D.C.

Corado pleaded guilty on July 17, 2024, to a single charge of wire fraud as part of a plea bargain deal offered by prosecutors. The charge to which she pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for D.C. says she allegedly diverted at least $150,000 ā€œin taxpayer backed emergency COVID relief funds to private offshore bank accounts for her personal use,ā€ according to a statement from the U.S. Attorneyā€™s office.

Under the federal wire fraud law, for which Corado is being prosecuted, she could be subjected to a possible maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and restitution requiring her to repay the funds she allegedly stole.

Court observers, however, have said that due to Coradoā€™s decision to waive her right to a trial and plead guilty to the lesser charge, prosecutors will likely ask the judge to hand down a lesser sentence than the maximum sentence.

An earlier criminal complaint filed against Corado, which has been replaced by the single charge to which she has pleaded guilty, came at the time the FBI arrested her on March 5, 2024, at a hotel in Laurel, Md., shortly after she returned to the U.S. from El Salvador.

At the request of her attorney and against the wishes of prosecutors, another judge at that time agreed to release Corado into custody of her niece in Rockville, Md., under a home detention order. The release order came seven days after Corado had been held in jail at the time of her March 5 arrest.

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Virginia

Pride Liberation Project announces additional Va. school board protests

Student-led group challenging Trump-Vance administrationā€™s anti-LGBTQ policies

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LGBTQ students demonstrate at Luther Jackson Middle School in Falls Church, Va., in June 2023. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Following their recent protests at school board meetings in Virginia to challenge the Trump-Vance administrationā€™s anti-LGBTQ policies, a student-led rights group on Wednesday outlined plans to continue their actions.

The Pride Liberation Project released a statement in early March announcing their ā€œMarch Month of Actionā€ after their first round of protests. The Pride Liberation Project on Wednesday issued another press release that provided additional details.

ā€œQueer students will rally at local school board meetings across Virginia, as they call for education leaders to reject the Trump-Muskā€™s administration escalating attacks against queer people.ā€ said Conifer Selintung on behalf of the Pride Liberation Project. ā€œSince taking office, the Trump-Musk administration has ignored the real issues facing our schools ā€” like declining reading scores and the mental health crisis ā€” and tried to bully queer students into the closet. Alongside other hateful attacks, theyā€™ve attacked nondiscrimination protections, banned gender-affirming care, and whitewashed history.ā€

The Pride Liberation Project press release also included a statement from Moth, an LGBTQ student at McLean High School.

ā€œI want to be able to go to school as myself, just like any other student,ā€ said Moth. ā€œTo do that, I need my school board to stand up to bullies.ā€

The Pride Liberation Project has also released a schedule of rallies it plans to hold this month.

The first rally took place at the Prince William County School Board meeting in Manassas on Wednesday. A second event took place at the Roanoke County School Board meeting on Thursday.

Additional rallies are scheduled to take place in Rockingham and York Counties on March 24, Loudoun County on March 25, and Fairfax County on March 27.

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