Stourbridge Chicago's closes six months after Ryan Passey stabbing
A nightclub where an aspiring footballer was stabbed to death has closed – with bosses blaming 'a campaign against the club'.
Ryan Passey died after being stabbed in Chicago's in Stourbridge last August.
Kobe Murray, 19, has been found not guilty of murdering Mr Passey after a crown court trial.
Today bosses at the Ryemarket venue said it is being shut down with immediate effect because they have been blamed for Mr Passey's death – and denied being at fault.
More than 3,500 people had signed a petition calling for the club to close for good.
Mr Murray, of The Broadway, Dudley, denied murdering 24-year-old Mr Passey and was cleared of murder and manslaughter by a jury at Birmingham Crown Court.
Mr Murray told the court he had a knife in his hand and 'pushed out' to fend off an attack – accidentally stabbing Mr Passey.
Peter Marks, chief executive of Deltic's which runs Chicago's, confirmed 18 full and part-time jobs will go due to the closure of the club, which first opened in 2012.
He said: "We are not the heartless business we have been portrayed to be."
He said everyone who worked at Chicago’s was devastated by Ryan’s death and could not comprehend the impact it had had on Mr Passey’s family and friends.
But he continued: “Chicago’s never had a chance to defend itself due to the legal case and was consistently misrepresented by many.
"Until that tragic night, the club had an unblemished licensing record of providing a fun and safe night out for the people in Stourbridge.
“As a responsible operator running a business in a generally safe town, at no point did we break any laws, or breach our licence conditions set by the police and local authority, which required us to search a proportion of our customers entering the premises, which we did on the night in question.
“Putting the blame on a single venue is not the answer.”
Young people also need increased education about the dangers of carrying knives, he added.
“Society has a growing problem with knife crime and the lives it takes and ruins," Mr Marks said.
"It is hard to comprehend why anyone would want to carry a knife on a night out, when such actions can have such devastating outcomes.”
He continued: "As a wider community, we need to educate young people on the dangers of carrying knives.
"We also need to make sure that there is a clear deterrent.
"The truth is that, for every knife we confiscate, the police very rarely make an arrest.
"Attitudes and the law need to change, so that carrying a knife is not only socially unacceptable but there are serious consequences for possession.
“Making a difference would be a positive legacy in the wake of such tragedy.
“There is no doubt that our decision to close will have an impact on the wider health of the local late-night economy, which of late has been a lot quieter.
"While some may view the night-time economy as a nuisance, in our experience, a town needs a balanced economy with investment in both the traditional daytime activities and those night time offers that give a lot of pleasure to a lot of people.
"The closure of an anchor business, such as Chicago’s, rarely benefits the town in the long term, quite the reverse.
“We are very sad to be leaving Stourbridge and would like to take this opportunity to thank our hard-working team and our loyal customers for their support over the years."
