Augusta commissioners are considering revoking or suspending the liquor license for a local nightclub after they say there were two shootings at the establishment within a month.

On Jan. 20, 22-year-old Chrishawn Bennelle Martin, of Augusta, was shot at Club Rain on the 1800 block of Gordon Highway, according to previous reporting. He was taken to Wellstar MCG, where he was pronounced dead.

District 2 Commissioner Stacy Pulliam said the shooting in January was the second within a month, although that is unconfirmed by the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office.

“There was a shooting on Dec. 16, where someone was shot in the foot,” Pulliam said in an interview. “Two incidents happened within a month, so that in and of itself is an issue. … This is the type of activity that’s going on at that establishment. We need to do something about it.”

The Augusta Chronicle requested the incident report for the alleged Dec. 16 shooting from the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office on Friday, but as of Monday evening, it was not supplied. In an email sent Monday from the sheriff’s office, the Records Division said there is a case number for the incident, but an incident report wasn’t immediately available. The sheriff’s office said it is waiting on a response from the deputy who was on scene that night, according to the email.

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Pulliam said the commission will be “depending heavily” on law enforcement to make suggestions as to what needs to be done about the issue. The discussion and a vote are slated to take place at Tuesday’s meeting.

“Every area in our city should be safe. That’s how I feel,” she said. “There should not be an area where you don’t want to go. … No one should ever feel like that.”

Pulliam said Friday that commissioners had not yet discussed the situation with the owner, Voncellies Allen, but did mention he is also the owner of Level 9 Sports Bar and Grill on Damascus Road, which went before the commission in April 2023 for similar safety concerns.

At the time, the sheriff’s office provided a statement citing at least one deadly shooting, a stabbing, five simple battery cases, a kidnapping and a sodomy case, according to previous reporting. Investigators said Allen hired additional security and ordered a metal detector following the incidents.

Even after noting drug issues at the establishment, investigators told commissioners they “would go against” revoking Allen’s license.

Ultimately, the public services committee approved putting Level 9 on probation for six months.

Pulliam declined to give any statistics on other crimes reported at Club Rain, only mentioning the two recent shootings. Additional statistics may be presented at Tuesday’s meeting.

“We’re not targeting them. That’s not how the decision was made,” she said. “I am not going out looking for these incidents, but when they come to me. I have to make a decision. My decisions are always based on the safety of my constituents and the area.”

As of Monday evening, Allen did not respond to a request for comment.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Augusta commissioners consider revoking a nightclub’s license