Columbia liquor store’s license could be revoked after fatal crash
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A downtown Columbia liquor store's license to sell alcohol could be revoked next month after a Missouri State Highway Patrol investigation found it sold to a minor who was then involved in a deadly crash.
The patrol's Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Control has decided to revoke the liquor license for Dash Convenience and Liquor Store on Ninth Street. The store has until June 9 to appeal that decision. Dash's owners can also challenge the ruling in court, said Missouri Department of Public spokesman Mike O'Connell.
A patrol investigation found that the store sold alcohol to 19-year-old Keith Sumner of Rocheport on Jan. 3, according to a news release. That night, Sumner was driving the wrong way on northbound Highway 63 when he hit another vehicle head-on, killing himself and three people in the other vehicle, including a 10-year-old girl, according to the patrol's crash report.
The full crash report lists alcohol and speeding as probable factors in the crash.
The patrol said in a news release Wednesday that the investigation found the store had sold Sumner alcohol several times and had sold it to other minors without checking identification. The patrol named Cpl. Nolan A. Bax and Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Control Agent Joseph Matherne its Team Members of the Month for May for their work on the case.
The store also faces a municipal charge for allegedly selling tobacco without asking for identification. A hearing in that case is set for June 27.
