Local Bar Still Employs Bartender Accused Of Selling Alcohol To Minor

By Author: Booth Lillian
Total Articles: 29
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Gastonia, NC — A Rock House Bar & Grill bartender is still on the job after getting arrested for selling alcohol to a person under the age of 21.
On Thursday, Jan 21st, North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement (NCALE) agents cited Gena Moore Cooke, 36, at the Rock House Bar & Billiards for serving a patron under the age of 21 after receiving complaints from the public.
An undercover confidential informant was sent in to test the quality assurance of bartenders checking the ages of patrons before they receive drinks.
NCALE entered the bar and observed as Cooke served the minor alcohol after checking his ID.
Cooke was taken out from behind the bar and given a citation. Cooke also failed a breathalyzer that was given at the scene and had to abandon her job for the night.
Cooke allegedly told NCALE agents that she checked for an identification card when she sold beer to the minor and denied that she was drinking despite the breathalyzer.
Attempts to speak with bar management and Cooke were unsuccessful but an anonymous report from a former boyfriend of Cooke claimed that Cooke was still ...
... employed at the bar and that Cooke was the daughter of the owner. Cooke’s first court appearance is Feb 25, 2016.
The Rock House was recently in the news for a number of incidents. In July of 2015, there were 2 separate shootings, one in which resulted in the death of a patron.
In October of 2015, the owner of the Rock House Grill (located at the same address) was arrested on 5 felony drug charges. Jay Bowers, the owner of Rock House Grill plead to a lesser charge and received probation for schedule 2 and schedule 6 drugs found in his car after a routine search of vehicles on Rock House property.
We asked Jason Walder, a former bar owner in Gastonia, if it was customary for a bar or restaurant to keep employees who had been charged with ‘serving underage’, “In every bar I’ve ever worked at or owned, If someone has been charged with drug or liquor violations, they are fired on the spot. It’s a slap in the face to ALE if you don’t terminate the employee, I can’t believe the Rock House would take the chance”
Anyone wishing to report violations of alcohol laws is asked to call the North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement at (919) 662-4500