A West End resident troubled by pounding music from bars in the area has called for clarity on the law — and said the Liquor Licensing Authority mishandled his complaint.

Bryant Trew’s complaints over persistent noise from the West End Sailboat Club as well as Woodys Sports Bar and Restaurant got a response from Darrin Simons, the Commissioner of Police, who said the issue was under discussion with the Department of Public Prosecutions.

Mr Trew told The Royal Gazette that he grew frustrated after highlighting the problem with police in April 2022, saying that the sailboat club in particular was a problem.

The club did not respond to queries about Mr Trew’s complaints, but the Ministry of National Security said the LLA was “investigating the matter and will make recommendations shortly”.

Mr Trew said the authority had “bungled the process” when he brought the matter to its attention, stating that he had specifically ruled out any request to deny the renewal of the establishment’s liquor licence.

“They basically did the exact opposite of what I asked for them to do,” I said. “What I asked for was for them to step in and take some kind of position on this.”

The LLA told the Gazette last week that it was “not authorised to comment” and Woodys bar management made no comment.

Mr Simons said he appreciated concerns over “loud music emanating from licensed premises in the Somerset area”.

“I would like to reassure the public that officers from the Somerset Police Station including community officers and the service liquor licensing officer have been working hard on this problem and have been meeting with residents of the area as well as the licensed premises and the Liquor Licensing Authority.”

He added: “There is a matter under review, which could result in charges being brought against one deejay in relation to loud-music complaints.”

The commissioner said police had spoken with club management as well as the LLA over three meetings since the summer and “believe that our discussions have been fruitful”.

“The BPS encourages persons who experience issues with unreasonable levels of loud music or music with offensive lyrics being played publicly to call police and make a formal complaint.

“The BPS needs to show a pattern of behaviour when bringing cases before the courts and the LLA. Anonymous complaints, or those who do not wish to follow through with their complaint, hamper efforts by the BPS to deal effectively with these issues.

“Officers must be able prove that on each such occasion the person responsible for the music was given the opportunity to desist and nevertheless continued to make the noise. Without that element, no offence is otherwise committed. See Section 7(4) of the Summary Offence Act 1926.”

Mr Simons said in reference to Mr Trew: “We can confirm that efforts were made to have that person attend liquor licence hearings to highlight the difficulty they say they have been experiencing”.

Mr Trew said he had been encouraged by police to speak with the LLA, and contacted the authority in September 2022, saying his intent was “not to object to the renewal of a licence, but to see what actions the LLA is able to take to address an issue”.

He reiterated the complaint the following month and was told that December that the LLA could not take action.

The e-mail stated: “Our powers reside in the renewal period to determine whether we should grant a licence or impose specific conditions.”

Mr Trew said he continued appealing to police this year to prosecute the West End Sailboat Club under the Summary Offences Act, and was aware of police taking statements from area residents after a particularly loud reggae session at the club in January.

In March, Mr Trew followed up with the LLA, repeating that he was not objecting to any licence renewals, adding: “If none of the liquor licence types grants these businesses the right to play music in this manner, I ask that the LLA set and enforce objective/measurable noise restrictions as a condition of their licence”.

However, he said the authority wrote to him on May 1 incorrectly stating that he had formally objected to the renewal applications for both businesses and asking him to attend a hearing on May 10.

He said he told the LLA that it was “completely incorrect” and called on it to clarify his complaint to both businesses.

Mr Trew said the LLA had “mangled the entire process” and that he had simply called for “rational and objective noise requirements”.

“Let’s at least start there. Let them say how loud is too loud.”

Mr Trew said he was aware of the LLA doing a random sound check, but that it had failed to dampen noise from the club.

He added that police contacted him on October 11 stating that they still did not know what the DPP would accept as a prosecutable offence.

Mr Trew said the problem was compounded by the vague language of the Summary Offences Act.

“You can interpret it loosely,” he claimed.

He said he was now trying to use the Office of the Ombudsman to shed light on what happened with his complaints.

Mr Simons told the Gazette: “In addition to our ongoing efforts as they pertain to dealing with loud music complaints, the BPS can also confirm that discussions are being held with the Department of Public Prosecutions with the aim of further developing methods and guidelines for dealing with loud noise complaints and how to effectively deal with repeat offenders.”

The commissioner spelt out how noise complaints were dealt with at present:

• 6am to midnight: evidence from at least one person situated more than 100 feet from the source of the sound to the effect that they were disturbed or annoyed by it, and confirmation that the person responsible had no permit from the Commissioner of Police

• Midnight to 6am: evidence from at least one person in the vicinity of the sound to the effect that they were disturbed or annoyed by it

• In either case: evidence from at least one police officer to the effect that the person making the noise was required to desist and nevertheless continued

“The evidence will need to establish that a particular person [such as the deejay] had control of the music on the relevant occasion,” Mr Simons said.

“In the case of licensed premises, we cannot simply assume that the licence holder is responsible.”

• UPDATE: this story has been amended to correct a comment from the Commissioner of Police in relation to a matter under review. We apologise for any inconvenience caused