By: Jake Stark

Gunnar Brown was socializing with friends at Mesa Pizza early Sunday when he said a bouncer grabbed his jacket and dragged him outside.

“He never said a word to me; he just started taking me out,” Brown said.

The bouncer allegedly accused Brown, who is not affiliated with the University, of turning out the lights in the restaurant, which Brown said he did not do.

The two got into a heated argument that ended with the bouncer punching Brown in the face twice, knocking one of his teeth out, he said.

“I don’t remember exactly what I was saying,” he said. “But I never touched the guy.”

When Brown’s friends tried to intervene, the bouncer pepper-sprayed them, according to a Minneapolis police report.

Minneapolis police took a report on the incident but did not make any arrests because it was a misdemeanor offense that needed more investigation, said Minneapolis police Sgt. Steve McCarty.

“Now, it’s up to the city attorney to determine if the case rises to the level of a felony,” he said.

Assault cases involving bouncers need to be reviewed carefully, McCarty said. Police need to determine if the bouncer crossed the line when dealing with an unruly customer.

But the line is often blurry, he said.

“I don’t think there’s a single answer you can give,” he said. “All these incidents need to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.”

Another assault

A University of Minnesota student was assaulted early Saturday near the University Fieldhouse, according to a Minneapolis police report.

The victim, 21, had walked off his bus when a man followed him off, the report said.

The man began yelling at the victim and pushing him from behind, the report said.

When the victim arrived at his home, the report said the man punched him in the back of the head.

The man left the scene before the victim called the police, the report said.