Community members calling for revocation of liquor license at Port Huron bar following man's death
PORT HURON, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - A St. Clair County family is now four months into seeking justice for what they call the homicide of their son.
There have been no charges in the Nov. 4, 2021, death of Joshua Conant, whom family members said was pinned down by bouncers outside of Roche Bar after a fight broke out, leading to the 26-year-old's death.
Community members are now calling for the revocation of the bar's liquor license, many even signing an online petition to gain momentum.
"I can tell you he didn't die of natural causes. He died from homicide," said a family member of Conant at Monday night's Port Huron City Council meeting.
"You guys really need to do the right thing and reject the liquor license renewal before you run out of time," said another community member addressing the council during the public comment period.
Port Huron City Manager James Freed addressed those who showed up to speak about Conant and Roche Bar's liquor license. He says the Conant family lawyers have advised them not to move forward with any possible decisions until they hear from the attorney general's office.
"We have been advised and requested by the family attorney not to take action until the AG has issued their report. We will respect the attorneys. To do that, we would have to hold a Quasi Trail here. You would jeopardize the jury pool, compromise evidence. We talk about Justice for Josh. I know this is hard, but we want to protect whatever prosecution the AG's office brings out," Freed said.
CBS News Detroit did reach out to the Attorney General's office to inquire about when we may see possible charges from Conant's death in the early morning hours of Nov. 4, 2023, and at this time, we haven't heard back.
We also reached out to Roche Bar to see if it plans on reopening the weekend of St. Patrick's Day for Port Huron's annual Pub Crawl, but we have also not heard back.
