The owner and licensee of one of Shropshire’s biggest nightclubs today said they will appeal against their sentences after they admitted 12 charges of breaching licensing laws.
Shaun Le Dain, 40, of Mayfield Drive, Buckley, and Kerry Wycherley, 59, of Tenters Square, Wrexham, who run the Buttermarket in Shrewsbury, yesterday pleaded guilty to six charges each of breaching licensing laws.
But today Mr Wycherley said they would appeal their fines totalling £7,500 and criticised Shrewsbury and Atcham Borough Council for bringing the prosecution.
He claimed the charges amounted to “technicalities.”
Mr Wycherley said he was even considering closing the Buttermarket.
He said: “Judge Bruce Morgan realised that it is an important, cultural venue with people travelling to the venue for more than 25 years.
“The council dropped 75 per cent of the charges. There were 52 charges and they dropped it down to 12 when it was pointed out that they were wrong.”
The licensing breaches were discovered after police were called to the club following a shooting on June 23 last year.
The club was accused in court of leaving the security locks on on some of the doors when it was occupied.
But at the hearing yesterday, Adrian Roberts, for Mr Wycherley, said: “We would say all the doors were unlocked at the time the event was taking place.
“The fire officers came much later, by which time the doors had been locked as the event was over.”
Judge Morgan, in his summing up, said: “Whether or not the doors were locked on the night is not for me to say.”
Mr Wycherley said: “It’s had a massive effect on the business. I’m considering closing.”
He added: “Central funds will have to pay our expenses because of the council’s mistake.”
Mr Roberts said after the case: “We are appealing against the sentence. It has been over-prosecuted.
“A lot of these differences between Mr Wycherley and the authority could have been resolved without going to court.”
By Rebecca Lawrence
2 Comments
Judge Morgan, in his summing up, said: “Whether or not the doors were locked on the night is not for me to say.”
Excuse me, but I thought it was up to judges TO make decisions based on the available evidence? Not to shrug their shoulders and say: “Beats ME what happened!”
Or am I old fashioned?
As for the fire doors ?…. well, I would have thought the written and sworn statements from revellers who left the venue VIA THESE DOORS would have given a fairly clear indication as to if they were locked or not !
Had the investigation been conducted properly, cctv footage from the public car park behind the Club, the town cctv camera on the railway bridge, those on the railway and those at the Post office would have been collected, reviewed and a very clear YES or NO answer obtained. Footage from the cameras, which roughly cover all sides of the building have PROVED BEYOND SPECULATION - lack of evidence should immediately require charges to be dropped.
Either they have PROOF or they DONT !
I sincerely hope the guys at the club do appeal - and WHEN they are TOTALLY VINDICATED I hope those that conducted the investigation, those that chose to bring charges and even the ‘Judge’ have their decisions and actions reviewed and their performance evaluated in full.