LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A new bill will be pre-filed in Frankfort, one a Louisville man hopes will save lives inside Kentucky bars.
The bill called “Christopher’s Law” is in honor of Christopher McKinney, who died after an altercation with a bouncer at Nowhere Bar in the Highlands.
"What I am trying to accomplish with Christopher's Law is not only to give Christopher a legacy but also make sure this doesn't happen to anyone ever again," Nick Clark, McKinney's husband, said.
The bouncer admitted to punching McKinney in the head one time while trying to remove him from the bar. Experts said that one punch killed him, but the bouncer was not criminally charged.
McKinney’s husband Nick Clark said he wants to make bars safer for customers and he wants employees and owners to be held accountable when something goes wrong. As written the law includes a standardized hiring process, bouncer training and certification program, record keeping of incidents involving bouncers and strict rules regarding enforcement working as off-duty security.
"The bill is very straight forward, its in my opinion a no brainer. And I really feel like the bar owners may be a little hesitant about it now but its only going to benefit them in the future."
Representative Lisa Willner is sponsoring the bill. It’s expected to be filed on Wednesday, the two-year anniversary of Christopher’s death.
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