Update: Café 8 Case Referred to Office of Attorney General
by Larry Janezich
Posted October 22, 2026
The Alcohol Beverage and Cannabis Administration (ABCA) has informed ANC6B that the Café 8 matter has been referred to the Office of Attorney General (OAG):
“Dear Commissioners:
This matter is with the Office of the Attorney General at this time. Your comments and recommendations have been shared with that office for review.”
The email, received on Wednesday, was in response to a (previously reported) letter from the ANC to ABCA last Tuesday urging that Café 8 not be allowed to reopen without agreeing to a list of conditions to address ongoing security, off-premises violence and neighborhood disorder. That letter also asked when the case would be taken up by the ABCA Board and stated that ANC6B would like to offer testimony in any proceeding.
ABCA’s response left no indication what would happen on Friday at 7pm when the MPD Order imposing a 96 hour closure of Café 8 expires. ABCA gave no details on the reasons for the referral. An effort by CHC to reach ABCA media inquiries was unsuccessful.
One possibility is the closure will be extended. ABCA might also be laying the ground work for a “show cause” hearing, a formal legal proceeding in which the OAG represents the District. The OAG could also be negotiating with Café 8 regarding conditions for reopening the restaurant without going to a formal hearing. In that case – as commonly happens – after getting such an agreement with the owner, OAG would take it to ABCA for approval and incorporation into a Settlement Agreement attached to the liquor license.
In other developments, there have been press reports concerning the two arrests made in the wake of the Barracks Row shooting on Saturday night.
The first is the arrest of the alleged shooter, Jerrell Jackson. Several news outlets have reported Jackson has a long criminal record and was under supervised release after serving a ten year prison sentence for shooting a Special Police officer.
The second is the arrest of Café 8 promoter, Charles Barnes, who is suspected of throwing the first punch in an altercation which reportedly preceded the encounter during which gunshots were fired. As reported by other news organizations, Barnes fled the scene and was the subject of a police warrant prior to him turning himself in to MPD Tuesday night.
