Seattle police have launched an investigation after a bartender was injured in an attack when she asked a customer for proof of vaccination, ABC’s Seattle affiliate KOMO News reports.
The attack took place on Monday, Dec. 27 at Joe’s Bar and Grill following an argument with the staff. Due to current COVID-19 related restrictions in King County, Washington, employees at the bar are required to ask all customers for proof of vaccination. THe customer allegedly attacked bartender Felicite Ogilvy with a sharpened broomstick after the fight continued to escalate, leaving her with a slash across her face.
“I asked him, ‘do you have your vaccination card?’ and he said ‘I’ve had the vaccine but I don’t have the card’ and I was like OK but you need to have proof of it,” Ogilvy told the outlet. “He ended up basically saying ‘You’re picking on me, I’m not going to deal with it.’ That’s when he started getting hostile.”
When another employee at the bar attempted to deescalate the situation, the man refused to leave and swung the stick which witnesses said had metal attached to it.
“He swung the stick as hard as he could at my face, so not only did it puncture me, he also slit me,” said Ogilvy. Following the attack, she required 31 stitches. The man fled the scene and boarded a train at a nearby light rail station, police noted. An investigation into the assault is ongoing, but police did attempt to find the man after boarding the same train he did later down the line.
King County implemented a proof of vaccination requirement at bars, restaurants, gyms, and live events with 500 people or more in late October. Any businesses that do not check for such proof could face steep fines. “There have been a few cases here and there of restaurants and stores having issues enforcing the mandate,” added Detective Patrick Michaud. “Thankfully these incidents are still fairly rare.”
