City centre bar told it can't reopen after 'pack of animals' jailed

A bid to reopen a city centre nightclub shut down after a brawl which led to a boxer being stabbed in the heart has been rejected. Anthony Dodson was left with life-threatening injuries after fighting broke out at the Safe House bar on Victoria Street last December.

The venue was stripped of its premises licence in January after concerns were raised by Merseyside Police. Now just days after six men were jailed for their role in the violence, an application to reopen the bar has been knocked back.

On Monday, Liverpool Crown Court was told some of those who became embroiled in the vicious incident burned their designer clothing in a park and attempted to flee to France as illegal stowaways on a lorry in the aftermath of the near fatal assault. Eight defendants - Milne Critchley, Adam Draper, Lee Duffy, Jordan Kinsella, Eugene Mason-Lamb, George Miller and Cameron Quinn and a 17-year-old boy who cannot be identified for legal reasons - were convicted of offences including unlawful wounding and violent disorder in connection with the early hours brawl just after Christmas.

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At the time of the incident involving Mr Dodson in December, Meshach Harris was listed as the designated premises supervisor (DPS) and premises licence holder. This was the case during an initial expedited review hearing that led to the Safe House bar closing its doors days later.

A Liverpool Council licensing and gambling sub-committee in March was told Mr Harris had stepped back voluntarily as DPS on January 18. Following a lengthy committee session on January 24, it was confirmed by the local authority and police that the licence would be stripped from the Safehouse after the attack on Mr Dodson during the festive period.

Karl Barry, licensing agent on behalf of Mr Harris, said owing to “pressure” from Merseyside Police, the company had indicated it no longer wished to hold the licence, and as a result Mr Harris - who was described by his agent as being of good character - sought to reclaim the licence through a second transfer. This was subsequently objected to by Merseyside Police but was ultimately successful.

The LDRS understands that a hearing at Liverpool Magistrates' Court yesterday upheld Liverpool Council’s decision to keep the location closed. At March’s committee, PC Nicola Ireland told councillors how Mr Harris’ “inexperience” had been a factor in the events leading to December’s incident and attempts to reclaim the licence were done “in effort to circumvent responsibility” and “frustrate the proceedings of the committee.”

PC Ireland said Mr Harris had done “nothing to reassure” police that circumstances had changed and they stood by their objection. The trial into the eight individuals heard how at 5am on December 27, "things turned ugly" inside the bar, with prosecutor Steven Ball telling the court: "This Safehouse was anything but.”

Mr Ball added on Monday how Mr Dodson "faces an uncertain prognosis" as his "heart is not functioning correctly.”