Santa Cruz police have arrested a suspect in connection with the vandalism of The Neighbor’s pub in downtown Santa Cruz, which they are now calling a hate crime.
James Eason, 45, will be rebooked on charges of vandalism, arson and a hate crime. Police say Eason was already in custody for an unrelated crime at the time he was arrested as a suspect in the vandalism. Investigators compared body camera footage from an arrest earlier this week with the surveillance camera stills from the incident.
Police responded to a report at The Neighbor’s, an LGBTQ+-oriented bar, at 3 a.m. on Tuesday, just days after it had officially opened. Owner Frankie Farr told Lookout on Wednesday that the button to automatically open the door was melted and burned off, burned napkins had been shoved into the door frame and a homophobic slur carved into the door’s glass. Farr said they believe that someone attempted to start a fire inside the pub, based on burned napkins put into the door.
The pub has remained open for its normal hours — Thursday and Friday from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 11 p.m.
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