NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – Staff at Eric Church’s new Broadway bar is referencing country music star Morgan Wallen and his recent arrest after he allegedly threw a chair from the top of the six-story honky tonk on Sunday night.
The marquee outside Chief’s now reads: “Our pigs fly. Our chairs don’t.” The marquee plays on the bar’s barbecue menu and Wallen’s alleged actions during its grand opening weekend that led to the “Broadway Girls” singer being charged with three felony counts of reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct.
The Metro Nashville Police Department said the 30-year-old singer almost hit two officers who were standing in the road outside of Chief’s. Wallen’s arrest affidavit said the chair landed within three feet of them around 10:53 p.m. The officers reviewed security video from the bar, which showed Wallen lunging and throwing the chair off the roof, according to the affidavit. A witness told officers Wallen threw the chair over him and laughed afterward.
While the bar jokes about the incident, Nashville’s director of nightlife Benton McDonough said it’s no laughing matter.
“I’ve thought about that all morning. How do you explain why a 30-year-old man would decide to throw a stool off the top of a rooftop bar?” McDonough said Monday. “I am simply dumbfounded.”
McDonough said nightlife staff, the Metro Beer Board, police and the fire marshal are all investigating the incident. Right now, there are no rules around netting or other safety barriers that are required on rooftop bars to keep items from falling to the street and sidewalk below.
Items falling off rooftop Broadway bars is a sporadic issue, McDonough said, but he is committed to addressing the problem to keep people safe. He would like to see better barriers to prevent things from being dropped along with a new coordinator to work with bar security and all Metro agencies involved.
“I think the more expansive (rooftop bar ledges) are, I think the better that is because I think that cuts down on accidental spills that we see from time to time,” McDonough said. “It also makes it more difficult for someone to actually throw an object from the roof, and it makes it more likely with the cameras we have, in the bars and that sort of thing, to be able to catch the culprit who does take that action.”
A bar manager at Chief’s told WSMV4 the bar is not releasing video of the incident and have no comment at this time. Wallen was released from jail in Nashville after posting a $12,500 bond.
Wallen’s lawyer said he is cooperating with the investigation.
The singer is due in court at 10:30 a.m. on May 3, according to court records. He’s scheduled to play a concert at Nissan Stadium later that night.
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