Photo: Getty Images
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — The City of Cambridge has handed down a one-day liquor license suspension for The Sinclair in Harvard Square after it failed to follow protocol on an alleged drugged drink last year.
The Cambridge License Commission voted on the suspension at a meeting Tuesday, saying the live music venue did not call an ambulance or police after a patron alleged that she was drugged.
According to the Board, Ilana Katz Katz testified that after consuming an alcoholic beverage at The Sinclair on Sept. 30, 2022, she became sick, felt very drunk, collapsed, and proceeded to throw up in the bathroom for an hour. Katz Katz informed Sinclair staff that she believed she was drugged and was screaming for assistance.
Katz Katz said that Sinclair staff never offered her any medical assistance and made her leave through an area far away from the front door despite her insistence on leaving the venue through the front. She also denied taking shots or saying she took any shots.
Tim Xayyaraj, Sinclair head of security who was on duty that night, also testified to the commission. Xayyaraj testified that he and another staff member took Katz Katz to a quiet area for assessment. The area has a ramp for EMS access, if necessary. Xayyaraj stated that Katz Katz was yelling and distressed, though walking, speaking normally, not slurring words, and not appearing overly drunk.
He told the Board he suggested Katz Katz go to the hospital and that she told him that she would leaving with some friends. He also testified that a friend of Katz Katz told them they had never seen anyone take "this many shots before."
Xayyaraj did not call the police and stated there were no policies in place as to the type of situation encountered.
Joshua Bhatti, who oversees training of staff and personnel at The Sinclair, testified attending the session on nonconsensual drugging hosted by the License Commission and posting the educational documents throughout the venue.
Bhatti said that the policy of calling emergency services at the signs of a possible drugging--a person in distress, unable to walk, losing control and consciousness--was not followed in this case.
"The testimony provided by the establishment contradicted itself. One person stated there was a policy on how to deal with non-consensual drugging cases. The other stated that there was none," said License Commission Chair Nicole Murati Ferrer at Tuesday's meeting. "It is unconscionable that after so many notifications, what is out there, what is known, the meeting and visit from the City, the employees on the floor were not trained on how to handle this matter."
The exact date of the suspension will be determined in a few weeks.
Follow WBZ NewsRadio: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | iHeartmedia App