In a move to ensure more proactive security measures, the Calvert County Liquor Board voted unanimously Thursday, Aug. 23 to suspend for 15 days the liquor license of Calypso Bay Crab House of Solomons. The panel’s action, which came with a caveat that the suspension could be held in abeyance if measures were taken, followed a lengthy discussion that included the playback of a 911 tape highlighting a night of mayhem that began at the bar during a weekend evening in late July.
“There’s not enough security to handle this,” declared one unidentified caller heard on the tape. A Calvert Control Center dispatcher was heard reporting an incident inside the bar involving “20 to 30 subjects fighting.” Later in the recording, a woman is heard crying hysterically while a dispatcher attempted to calm her.
According to F/Sgt. Todd Ireland of the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office, trouble at the Solomons bar has been a major concern for law enforcement since early 2011. “To me, this is like déjà vu,” said Ireland. “We’re revisiting the same issues.” Ireland added that “taxpayers’ money” was being spent to quell trouble at one business.
Bar owner James Talbot told the panel he has converted Calypso Bay into a nightspot that features “retro” music from the 1970s, 80s and 90s. Talbot said the “hip-hop music” that had been used to attract a younger crowd to the watering hole has been permanently banned and for the past few weeks an older, more mature crowd has been frequenting the establishment.
That prompted an admonishment from Liquor Board Chairman Alonzo Barber. “You are blaming it on the music, not the crowd,” said Barber. “I was hoping to hear something about added security.”
“I wasn’t blaming the music, I was blaming the crowd,” Talbot replied, adding, “I can’t say I’m never going to have another fight again.”
While Ireland, Sheriff Mike Evans [R] and Lt. Dave McDowell all expressed concerns about the mayhem that seems to fester at Calypso Bay on the weekends and spill over into the streets and convenience stores of Solomons, Talbot found a bit of an ally in Dfc. Edwin Bradley. “It’s mostly gangs,” said Bradley of the riffraff that has plagued the bar’s weekend operation. Bradley said the rivals come from St. Mary’s and southern Calvert counties. Many of the misbehavers used to frequent Catamarans prior to that bar’s closing late last year.
“Security is the key,” said McDowell. “A business owner has a responsibility to control the crowd. There
