P.G. officials say dance hall laws lack teeth

Prince George’s County officials say the laws regulating dance hall licenses have lacked the teeth needed to stamp out violence and shut down venues where homicides frequently occur. Unlike laws governing alcoholic beverage licenses in the District, which allow the ABC Board to suspend or revoke licenses after violent incidents at bars and clubs, law and code enforcement officials in Prince George have been unable to take action against dance halls.

“We’ve dealt with this issue for so long, and it’s so frustrating from a law enforcement standpoint,” said Acting Police Chief Mark Magaw. “We have homicides occur at these locations time and time again and we can’t do something about it.”