Police closed a Prince George’s County nightclub using a new law that cracks down on clubs and dance halls with violent reputations after a drive-by shooting Monday morning left one woman dead.
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MSG nightclub in Capitol Heights was ordered to close Wednesday morning by Prince George’s County police and the Department of Environmental Resources, which cited the venue for operating as a dance hall without a proper license.
Jasmine Banks, 20, was shot in the head as she left the club at about 2:44 a.m. Monday, police said. Another bystander was also shot, but suffered non-life threatening injuries.
The shots were fired from a vehicle traveling eastbound on Central Avenue, according to Deputy Police Chief Kevin Davis.
Banks died Tuesday afternoon. The investigation is still open, and police are offering a reward for any tips that help lead to an arrest.
Misdemeanor criminal charges were filed against the club’s owner, Eric Pickens, as well as three MSG employees – Jerome Tillery, Ronald Dixon and Darryl Robinson – who were working at the club the night of the shooting, according to police.
MSG is the first venue police have closed under the new dance hall legislation, which was passed before the County Council’s summer recess and quickly signed into law by County Executive Rushern Baker.
The emergency bill is designed to make owners, event promoters and others responsible for security plans at dance halls more culpable for the violence occurring around them, said Councilwoman Karen Toles, D-Suitland.
“We can’t continue to lose lives in Prince George’s County as it relates to these establishments,” she said.
Before Banks’ death, 61 homicides had been linked to the dance halls since 2005, The Washington Examiner reported when the council was considering the legislation.
MSG must remain closed until it obtains a proper dance license or appeals the violation before a new appeals board established by Toles’ legislation.
Hundreds of patrons were inside the club Sunday night for a performance by TCB, a go-go band that has performed at several local venues on nights homicides have been linked to those establishments, according to Davis.
Pickens denies that TCB was playing at MSG that night, and said security denied entry to about seven or eight people he suspects may have retaliated by firing shots at the club.
Banks’ death was the result of senseless violence, he said, and MSG can’t be held responsible for the crimes of a few individuals. Despite the order from DER, Pickens said he’s still open for business and may file a lawsuit challenging the law.
The misdemeanor charges against the MSG employees carry six-month sentences and $1,000 fines.
All four charged were summoned to a district court hearing on Sept. 20.
