Department of Alcohol Suspends Culver City Bar’s Liquor License After Fatal DUI Crash

Patch.com reported on Wednesday that the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) has suspended the license of a Culver City bar after a fatal DUI crash last spring.

According to a statement released by the agency on Tuesday, February 1, 2022, ABC has suspended the license of the Cinema Bar located at  3967 Sepulveda Boulevard in Culver City after they furnished alcohol to an underage woman from Los Angeles. 

On April 24, 2021, Bianca Lopez was involved in a fatal DUI crash on the 101 Freeway that killed a 50-year-old man and a 15-year-old boy. Lopez was arrested on DUI and two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter. 

The regulatory board initiated a Targeted Responsibility for Alcohol Connected Emergencies (TRACE), where investigators worked closely with the California Highway Patrol on the case. Through their investigations and eyewitness testimony, the two agencies found that the Cinema Bar, which participates in the TRACE program, served alcohol to a minor. The agency also named Roderico Castillo as the Cinema Bar employee who served alcohol to Lopez, a minor at the time.

The suspension immediately prohibits the Cinema Bar from serving any alcohol. 

In a statement, ABC Director Eric Hirata said, “Preventing underage drinking and driving is a public safety priority. ABC licensees must remain vigilant and check identifications carefully to prevent these tragedies from happening.”

The TRACE program operates on a  grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)

 

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