Nightclub owner says 'wild west' downtown attracts violence

The “wild west” nature of downtown Colorado Springs at night is to blame for a string of violent incidents, including a recent shooting, outside the 13 Pure nightclub, a co-owner of the bar said.

Michael Laughlin said his club isn’t responsible for what happens outside its doors and blames an overall increase in crime downtown for the violence.

“There’s a limit of what we can do,” Laughlin said. “We can’t control what people do before they come in the club, or after they leave.”

He said everyone who comes into the club is patted down, checked with a metal detector and has his or her bags are searched. Once patrons are out the door, he said, they are someone else’s problem.

But police say 13 Pure is responsible for attracting a clientele that’s more likely to be violent than patrons of most other clubs downtown.

They cite statistics in the first six months of 2009 that show police were called to 13 Pure, 217 E. Pikes Peak Ave., 164 times or nearly every day, January to July.

“We don’t know with any certainty why this club seems to attract individuals who later engage in illegal activities,” Colorado Springs Police spokesman Lt. David Whitlock said. “It’s something that we’re concerned about and we want to understand.”

He cited the most recent incident, early Sunday, when police were called to a mob scene outside 13 Pure.

Several people were firing guns, including a police officer. One man was shot and taken to a hospital, and the officer involved was put on paid leave until an investigation is completed.

But that’s just the most recent in a long list of violent incidents outside the club that include:

• On Dec. 6, a man who had left the club was shot at as he drove from a nearby parking lot. The bullet hit his windshield, just missing his head.

• On Dec. 4, a club bouncer chased down a patron who had been in a fight inside the bar. When outside, the man pulled out a knife and threatened to stab the bouncer.

• On Nov. 29, a large crowd gathered outside the club after closing. In the ensuing disturbance, two men were stabbed.

Whitlock said the 164 calls to police as of July 1, the most recent statistics available, was second highest in the city to Rum Bay on Tejon Street downtown, which had 186 calls in that same period.

Laughlin said those numbers prove the violence outside 13 Pure is on par with other downtown nightclubs.

But Whitlock said the Rum Bay numbers may be skewed because it is surrounded by other clubs. It is one of the most well-known of the clubs and may not have been the source of the actual incident in each of the 186 calls.

13 Pure is more isolated — roughly two blocks from the nearest bar — meaning it is likely the source of nearly all 164 calls for police help, Whitlock said.

Laughlin argued the City Auditorium, a block away from 13 Pure and with a shared parking lot, often has large events where liquor is sold and is responsible for some of those police calls.

The 13 Pure location has been the scene of violence since a fight between Crips and Bloods gang members at the site, then called Eden, resulted in a shooting in 2007.

That club’s reputation prompted police to warn parents and clubgoers about its “Pimp, Thug and Ho” costume party, which was later cancelled.

Eden was sold and re-opened as 13 Pure in 2008. At that time, co-owner Scott Collman told The Gazette he hoped the club would be more upscale and avoid the image of violence and gang activity.

“I want it to be a safe place for people to have fun,” he said.

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