Petaluma officials move to close Roaring Donkey after bouncers arrested

Petaluma City officials say a Saturday night altercation at Jamison’s Roaring Donkey in which a patron was beaten by bouncers underscores what they’ve been saying for years: The popular downtown night spot poses an ongoing safety risk.

This week, they stated their intention to shut the bar down for good.

In Saturday’s incident, a 38-year-old Santa Rosa man told police he was in the men’s room at the Roaring Donkey a little before 11:30 p.m. when a woman entered and was followed by the bar’s hired security, who were trying to remove her. According to police reports, the man, who said he’d just arrived there and was sober, questioned the bouncers’ methods, resulting in an argument.

The bouncers told the man to leave, but he continued to argue with them, according to a Petaluma police news release. The guards then reportedly struck the man as they removed him from the bar. Once outside, according to the news release, “security staff continued to assault the victim, on the sidewalk in front of a neighboring business.”

One witness said that a bouncer held the man to the ground in a choke hold while others kicked and punched him in the head. He suffered swelling and bruising along the left side of his head as well as abrasions, police said.

The man called police, who searched the bouncers, one of whom was found with a set of brass knuckles, which are illegal. Two of the bouncers were also found to be on probation or community supervision, police said.

Arrested were Diego Vega-Ramirez, 25, of Rohnert Park, and four others from Santa Rosa: Christopher Jonathan Ortiz, 31, Miguel Jasso Berber, 25, Christopher Vega-Ramirez, 25, and Daniel Vega-Ramirez, 27.

The victim was treated at the scene and released. Bar management closed the business for the rest of the night.

Earlier this week, city officials indicated a more permanent closure was in the works.

“On May 14, we are going to the city’s Planning Commission to seek revocation of (the bar’s) conditional use permit,” said Assistant City Attorney Jordan Green in an email to the Argus-Courier.

Green said a conditional use permit, without which the bar cannot serve alcohol, “requires them to have a security plan that has been approved by the city’s chief of police. Despite several meetings and email correspondence between (Jamison’s Roaring Donkey) and city staff, they still have not submitted an approved comprehensive security plan, which would provide their staff the tools they need to effectively manage their business.”

That’s necessary, city officials say, given the Roaring Donkey’s longstanding pattern of safety concerns and violations.

According to information provided in June 2023 by Community Development Director Brian Oh, in the five years between mid-2018 and mid-2023, first responders received a total of 939 calls for service to all Petaluma drinking establishments. Of those, 224 – about 24% of all calls – were to the Roaring Donkey.

Similarly, Oh said that of 197 crime reports filed from Petaluma drinking establishments during the same time period, 48 – or 24% – were made from the Roaring Donkey.

“I want to share background to ongoing discussions we are having with owners of the Roaring Donkey to ensure the health and safety of our Petaluma community,” Oh told the Argus-Courier at that time.

This week, Petaluma police Lt. Garrett Glaviano added that “between January 2023 and April of 2024, we have responded to the Jamison’s Roaring Donkey 151 times, 35 times for disturbances or fights, and have taken 20 reports.”

Saturday’s incident also wasn’t the first time police responded to reports of Roaring Donkey security clashing with bar patrons – although it was the first time police had enough probable cause to arrest the bouncers.

“This year we have received seven reports of patrons being assaulted by security prior to Saturday night’s incident,” Glaviano said. But he added that “none of those reports could be substantiated, and in two cases officers concluded security had acted appropriately.”

In 2023, Glaviano noted, “two incidents where patrons were assaulted by security staff were sent to the District Attorney’s office requesting charges. Neither of the cases were filed.”

Should the Planning Commission decide to revoke the bar’s permit in May, all alcoholic beverage sales and live entertainment will cease effective immediately.

Jamison’s Roaring Donkey is owned by Brian Tatko and Greg Johnson, who founded the bar in 2014. They also purchased a second Sonoma County bar, Cotati’s 8 Ball Tavern, in 2018.

In response to a Tuesday morning email about security issues at the Roaring Donkey, the bar owners’ attorney, Patrick Ciocca, said he needed more time to respond to the Argus-Courier’s questions. Asked for comment on a narrower set of questions – regarding the Roaring Donkey’s bouncers and whether their actions on Saturday were appropriate – Ciocca sent the following statement Wednesday:

“The management of Jamison’s Roaring Donkey is actively reviewing video, interviewing witnesses and bar staff. They do not feel they have gathered enough information to make a determinative statement regarding the incident as a whole.”

Ciocca's statement also said early reports on the incident were "erroneous" but did not provide specifics.

Police also believe that too many incidents of drunk driving can be traced back to the Kentucky Street bar. According to Glaviano, in 2022, 53 people were arrested for suspected DUI in Petaluma, and 35 of them said their last drink was at the Roaring Donkey.

Last Saturday’s incident occurred on the same day as the Butter and Egg Days parade and festival, an event known to lead to drunkenness downtown. However, “This was the most significant event of (Saturday) evening and was not necessarily related to the Butter and Egg parade,” Glaviano said. “The only incident closely related to the parade was a misdemeanor domestic battery that originated on Kentucky Street at 5:15 p.m.”

He added that there were two DUI arrests on Saturday, and that “Overall it was a busy day with 173 calls for service between 11 a.m. and 3 a.m., but other than those mentioned we did not have significant issues.”

Anyone with footage or information on the Saturday night incident at Jamison’s Roaring Donkey is asked contact Petaluma police Officer Nathan Good at 707-781-1262 or ngood@cityofpetaluma.org.

Argus-Courier Staff Writer Amelia Richardson contributed to this report.

Don Frances is editor of the Petaluma Argus-Courier. Reach him at don.frances@arguscourier.com.