Banned St. Charles Bar Patron Cited With Assault After Alley 64 Manager Reports Threat

A St. Charles man who already had been banned from most downtown St. Charles taverns has been cited with assault after he reportedly threatened a bar manager who asked him to leave the establishment early Saturday, according to police reports.

Police said an assault citation was issued against Ryan R. Fitzsimmons, 29, of the 41W000-099 block of Empire Road, who had defied a St. Charles Tavern Association ban when he entered , and became belligerent with the staff there when he was asked to leave.

Police were called to the tavern at 12:37 a.m. Saturday, April 20, 2013, by one of the owners, who told the officer Fitzsimmons is on the association’s “banned list” of patrons who have been barred from downtown bars.

The list was one of the measures most downtown bar owners agreed to as part of an effort to keep out troublemakers after the city started cracking down on alcohol-related problems such as fighting in the downtown.

Fitzsimmons is on the list, and on Saturday made his way into Alley 64 and was served a beer before staff there recognized him, an owner told police. The report states, “they gently mentioned to him that he was not supposed to be there,” when Fitzsimmons became upset, particularly with the bar’s manager. The police report states he became belligerent and profane when he was told to leave, screaming and at one point threatening to kill the manager. Two bouncers intervened before the confrontation could become physical, and Fitzsimmons left, the report stated.

The bouncers and bar manager each gave the officer accounts of the exchange that corroborated the report of the co-owner, the report stated. Police checked the area but could not find Fitzsimmons.

On Saturday evening, the report states that police found Fitzsimmons at a North 3rd Street bar and questioned him about the incident at Alley 64. According to the report, Fitzsimmons told officers he had just ordered a beer when the bar manager ordered him to leave. When he insisted on getting a refund, Fitzsimmons told the officer, the bar manager knocked the beer out of his hand and tackled him.

The officer, however, pointed out to Fitzsimmons that the bar manager and three other witnesses had said there was no physical confrontation. At that point, the report states, Fitzsimmons told the officer he got upset and threatened to knock the bar manager’s teeth out. He denied threatening to kill him, the report states.

The officer returned to Alley 64, where the staff reiterated there had been no physical contact with the man. The bar manager told police he wanted to pursue the assault complaint in to further discourage disruptive behavior.

Police said Fitzsimmons was cited with an order to appear in Kane County Branch Court on May 16, 2013.