A man ejected from a bar in Florida for not consuming alcohol, even though he says his wife and friends were downing drinks and he was the designated driver, is fighting back with a lawsuit. Gary Maujean, 37, claims in a suit filed this month against Carlie's Lounge that he was unceremoniously tossed out of the establishment last June by the new owner who was angry that he was only drinking coke.
"The owner of the bar came over and he said 'if you don't order alcohol I'm going to kick you out of the bar cause I can't make any money on people that just order sodas'," Maujean's attorney Tom Carey told AFP.
Carey said his client pointed out that his wife and friends had ordered several alcoholic drinks and food and that he was sticking to soda as he was the person to drive home.
He said the owner, unconvinced, "picked Maujean up out of his chair, dragged him to the door, threw him outside and beat him."
Maujean ended up with 5,000 dollars in medical bills, according to the civil suit.
A woman who identified herself as the manager at the Pinellas Park establishment told AFP that the incident was related to a grudge Maujean held against the bar's owner.
"He hated everything, he's a negative person," said the woman who would only identify herself as Diane.
The incident has prompted one of the state's senators, Mike Fasano, to introduce a bill that would prevent bar owners from throwing out patrons who don't purchase alcohol.
