Police crash SUV into St Louis gay bar and arrest owner for assault

Driver reportedly said he was trying to avoid hitting a dog at first, then trying to avoid a parked car, before crashing into Bar:PM

An LGBTQ+ bar owner in Missouri who was jailed after police accidentally crashed a cruiser into his establishment is facing charges filed against him by prosecutors - albeit ones that were quickly reduced amid a public outcry over the case's circumstances.

Nobody should have to go through this - going from being a victim to going to have to defend yourself, your family and your business," James Pence, whose husband, Chad Morris, was arrested and charged, told reporters at a news conference on Tuesday in their home town of St Louis. That's not what the police are here to do."