The Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation (DBR) will hold a hearing this Thursday, March 10, at 11 a.m. to review additional evidence and hear from witnesses and investigators in order to determine what factors led to the shooting that occurred on Sept. 2, 2021 at the Italo-American Club in Warren, which claimed the lives of Warren’s Assistant Fire Chief, Brian Remy, and resulted in the shooter, Italo-American Club president Michael Ouellette, taking his own life.

Dependent on the outcome of the hearing, the club could lose its liquor license permanently, have it reinstated, or face a totally different outcome as determined by the DBR. The club could appeal any adverse decision to the Superior Court and, potentially, the Supreme Court. The DBR may also rule against Warren’s decision to revoke the club’s license, which could also be appealed by the town.

The Warren Town Council voted unanimously to revoke the club’s liquor license on Sept. 14, following an emotional show cause hearing where members of Remy’s family spoke and implored the council to take action. Kevin Bristow, attorney for the Italo-American Club, said at that time that it was impossible for the council to separate the emotion from the facts of the case, and therefore he argued that the club did not get a fair outcome as a result.

The DBR, following an initial hearing on the matter, ordered on Sept. 24 that the club be granted of stay of its liquor license revocation, contingent on some new restrictions — including restricting the sale of alcohol on the premises between 12 and 8 p.m. and enacting a new safety plan that mandates the reporting of “all observed unruly, argumentative, or threatening conduct by any patron of the Club” to Warren police.

The Italo-American Club did not respond to an inquiry about how those measures were implemented, however Anthony DeSisto, Warren’s Town Solicitor, said that he was unaware of any violations of those new requirements and that Warren police had been checking on the club “regularly” to see that they were being adhered to.

A waiting game finally ending
Since the stay was granted, the Warren Town Council has held off on any action regarding the club’s license, waiting for the full hearing to be scheduled from DBR. During their Feb. 8 meeting last month, when the subject came up again, it was apparent that the town was getting fed up with waiting.

“Patience is running out here on Warren’s end and there would be no further continuances of this matter after this month,” DeSisto said to the council during the meeting, relaying his communications with DBR to the council. “We’ve notified our witnesses and they’re all ready to go, and that includes members of the State Police.”

The council eventually made a motion that DBR should schedule the full hearing no later than Feb. 28, and that there would be no further continuances for a decision on whether or not to renew the club’s liquor license.

During their meeting on March 8, the Town Council ultimately decided to grant one last continuance on the Italo-American Club's liquor license renewal to see what happens at the hearing on Thursday.

Regardless of what happens with the hearing, DeSisto made it clear during the council's Feb. 8 meeting that any negotiations regarding a settlement as an acceptable outcome was not on the table.

“I’ve told DBR and the hearing officer and the attorney for the license holder that there will be no negotiations on this, and that the town does want to have a hearing and does want all the facts to get out to the public on this matter,” he said.

In an interview on Monday, DeSisto said that the town was prepared to make a solid case for why they revoked the license, and that new evidence from the completed State Police investigation and witness testimony would help paint that picture.

“The Town has a compelling case, but you never know what the outcome will be,” he said.

A call to prevent another tragedy
Janine Remy, Brian Remy’s wife, spoke before the council following their discussion of the Italo-American Club’s liquor license on Feb. 8, asking them to do something to prevent another tragedy from occurring in the town.

“I wanted to ask what the council has done for the town as far as an ordinance to prevent anything like this going forward like what happened last September to my husband, Brian, who has given almost 50 years of service to the community,” she said. “I would like the council to think about putting something together that would prevent another horrific, senseless tragedy in the future to spare someone else from going through this hell. I know you have the responsibility to try to protect the residents and taxpayers of this town and to make it safe.”