Once again, a shooting occurs at Shadow Bar
By Charles Sercombe
Hamtramck’s most notorious bar is once again in the news.
Last Thursday at about 11:30 p.m., four men leaving the Shadow Bar were approached by two men with guns. The two suspects demanded money from the four men as well as their Cartier glasses.
One robbery victim was shot in the leg, but why he was shot is not clear. The two suspects escaped.
None of the four victims agreed to cooperate with investigators, saying they had “no comment,” according to Detective Derek Suwalkowski.
There has been a rash of robberies in recent months near the bar as well as reported shootings. One of those shootings was fatal. On April 16, a 21-year-old man was shot to death after he had left the bar.
Two Detroit men, Rapheal Newman and Mark Woods, both 19 years old, are being charged with Hamtramck’s first murder of the year. The motive for the shooting has not been made public, pending a preliminary examination to be held next Thursday in Hamtramck 31st District Court.
Trouble at or near the bar usually occurs Thursday nights. According to the bar’s website, the theme for Thursdays is “PYT,” which is widely known to be an acronym for “Pretty Young Thing.” Thursdays are also “Ladies Night” where women can get into the bar for free until 11 p.m. The bar allows those who are 18 years old and older to enter even though the legal drinking age is 21. You can legally enter a bar if you are 18 years old but you may not consume alcohol.
Photos of Thursday nights inside the bar, as seen on the Shadow website, show huge crowds on the dance floor where someone who is younger than 21 years old could easily consume alcohol without being noticed by the bar staff or security. And considering it’s ladies night, one would imagine there are plenty of eager guys offering to buy drinks for underage women.
The bar also offers drink special that night — $5 for Long Islands and $5 for a shot of 1800 tequila. The slogan for the night: “It doesn’t cost a lot to party hard.”
City Manager Bill Cooper has said he is looking into getting state regulators to pull the bar’s license because it has become a nuisance and dangerous to the community.
6 Responses to Once again, a shooting occurs at Shadow Bar
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Joe
May 22, 2010 at 9:51 am
Can you please provide an address next time?
chip
May 22, 2010 at 11:54 am
It’s located at 11425 Jos. Campau, just north of Holmes St.
Roger
May 24, 2010 at 10:20 am
you cant miss it, just follow the trail of fliers and bodies
helen
May 29, 2010 at 5:22 pm
If the pretty young things and guys want to dance, drink, and get together why don’t they do it in their own neighborhoods and backyards. Not in ours.
We live here and don’t want the crime and noise. Go “play” someplace else.
Roger
June 2, 2010 at 4:31 pm
Dancing, drinking and “playing” used to be the majority of this city’s economy, this town was for many years a “destination” not an “origin” I would like to think all the people in the city would like to see our economy keep improving, however, its not the fun that’s the problem, its the violence. People wont spend money at a bloodbath. people want a good time with good friends. look into “road house” its a very good movie about a bar that changes its image and thus its clientele (sp?) I’ve never been to the Shadow bar, any readers out there who have been there that can shine some light (pun intended) on the future outlook of this establishment?
Phoebe
June 15, 2010 at 11:14 pm
I know plenty of people who go to Shadow Bar. They always tell me that they liked it better when it was a gay bar. The people seemed friendlier, and it was less violent. They say that they are afraid to leave there, so they leave in huge crowds so nobody gets hurt. I hope they change it back to being a gay bar. I never heard of a shooting there back then.