La Carreta gets 10-day license suspension
Business will pay over $3,000 in fines after ‘serious injury’
PORTSMOUTH — La Carreta Mexican Restaurant’s liquor license will be suspended for 10 days in December as part of a settlement agreement with the New Hampshire Liquor Commission in connection with serving a “visibly intoxicated” person, leading to “serious bodily injury.” The business also agreed to pay more than $3,000 in fines.
The Hanover Street restaurant and cocktail lounge was cited by the Liquor Commission for numerous violations that occurred March 24. La Carreta agreed to the settlement of three violations late Monday, hours before its representatives were scheduled to appear in Concord for a hearing on the case Tuesday.
No information released to public on ‘serious bodily injury’
The Liquor Commission has been asked by Seacoastonline multiple times this week to provide information about the incident involving La Carreta and “serious bodily injury,” such as where it occurred and what happened. As of this writing, the Liquor Commission has not provided this information.
Seacoastonline filed a Right to Know law request for the information Monday and received a response Wednesday from paralegal Janet Donnelly stating it will take the Liquor Commission 30-60 days to respond.
Commission spokesperson E.J. Powers of the Montagne Powers public relations firm said only the “serious bodily injury” outlined in the charge did not result in death.
La Carreta’s penalty is equivalent to the aggravated maximum penalty the Portsmouth Gas Light Co. restaurant could face in its pending case regarding a driver its staff allegedly served drinks to before a fatal crash early morning Thanksgiving 2022 at the city traffic circle.
What is known about La Carreta’s penalty
The heftiest penalty is in connection to an aggravated violation for serving an “alcoholic beverage to a person who was visibly intoxicated or who a reasonable and prudent person would know is intoxicated, resulting in a serious bodily injury.” La Carreta will pay an administrative fine of $2,500
for the charge, have its liquor license suspended for 10 days beginning Dec. 18, and four points will be assessed against its liquor license for a full year, according to the Liquor Commission.
The business is also paying a $500 fine and having four additional points assessed against its liquor license for a violation of serving alcohol to “a person who was visibly intoxicated or who a reasonable and prudent person would know is intoxicated,” the commission reported. The commission added La Carreta’s liquor license “shall be suspended for three (3) days to be held in abeyance for twelve (12) months pending no like violation.”
La Carreta is also paying an administrative fine of $100 over a third charge for allowing an employee to consume alcohol while on the job.
The violations were all committed March 24, according to the Liquor Commission. The restaurant’s attorney, Pierre Chabot of Devine Millimet, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.