The raid of The Boat Club on North Hill Street in January found
more than 200 minors inside the bar, most of them Notre Dame and
Saint Mary's students. The owners of the bar, which had a reputation
for being soft on underage drinking, later sued the students for
using fake IDs. The plaintiff argued that the minors were to blame
for the business's demise because they misrepresented themselves.
The suit asked for damages of $3,000 per defendant.
In August a magistrate in the Saint Joseph County Superior Court
granted the request of an attorney representing 40 of the students
to dismiss the suits against his clients. The magistrate said
other courts have held that bars are ultimately responsible for
complying with liquor laws.
The bar owner is appealing that decision, and the magistrate
has put off ruling on the other cases until next April. That will
give the appeals court time to study the decision that dismissed
the suits against the first 40.
(Autumn 2003)
