Mayor Moves Forward with Nuisance Charges
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Jackson Mayor Jerry Gist said in light of the fatal incident at Club Karma, Sunday, he is enforcing stricter guidelines already in place. “It’s our job to protect our citizens who go into those businesses,” said Mayor Gist. Tuesday, officials said the owner of Club Karma, Jerry Gardner, surrendered his business and beer licenses. Despite this, Mayor Gist said he is moving forward with filing nuisance actions on businesses which have had several police calls to their establishments. “If they can’t control the actions of their people, they need to shut down, before we shut them down,” said Mayor Gist. “I think that’s kind of a knee-jerk reaction to what happened at Karma,” said Adrian Cartledge, owner of Cornerstone Lounge in downtown Jackson. While Cartledge said he applauds the mayor actions, he feels the mayor may be taking it too far. “Business owners are just like Walmart. They can’t control who comes in and out of those doors.” He said after the incident at Club Carma, he is making changes to the security at his lounge. “We’re adding additional security. We’re reaching out to some of the local security companies to provide security within our sidewalk area. Cartledge said he hopes other businesses will do the same. “Spend that extra dollar to make sure your customers and patrons are safe and secure at all times.” Mayor Gist said he will file nuisance actions with the court by the end of the week.
