The St. Louis police officer who arrested the co-owner of Bar:PM last winter after a police SUV crashed into the bar is no longer with the department.
St. Louis Metropolitan Police Spokeswoman Evita Caldwell confirmed to SLM that Ramelle Wallace parted ways with the department last month after 16 years, though she would not say if he was fired or left on his own accord.
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Wallace first came to public attention after two rookie officers rammed into the South City gay bar in the early hours of December 18, 2023. Wallace was not in the SUV that careened into the establishment, but allegedly escalated the situation by placing one of the bar’s co-owners in handcuffs within 30 seconds of arriving. The other co-owner, Chad Morris, objected to his partner’s treatment, and Morris alleges he was subsequently beaten and arrested by Wallace.
In the days after the incident, it came to light that Wallace had previously been accused of breaking the leg of a 52-year-old bystander who heckled officers as they attempted to make an arrest at an apartment complex on South Broadway in 2019. The civil lawsuit stemming from that incident settled out of court earlier this year.
Wallace is also currently at the center of a lawsuit brought by Richard E. Hopkins III, who was being booked into the city jail in June 2023 when he says Wallace circled him, putting up his fists in a fighting stance, before body slamming, punching and choking him as correctional officers looked on.
Attorney Javad Khazaeli represents the owners of Bar:PM as well as Hopkins in separate lawsuits against Wallace and the department. He also represents Morris, who still faces an assault charge stemming from his interaction with Wallace after police crashed into his bar.
“After more than a decade of doing this, and filing dozens of lawsuits, I’m glad to see at least one bad officer be forced to resign or be terminated,” Khazaeli says. Referring to the criminal case against Morris, he added: “I’m just confused as to why my client is still being prosecuted, when Wallace was the initiator and everyone knows it.”
SLM reached out to the city Circuit Attorney’s Office office to ask whether Wallace no longer being on the force would affect Morris’ prosecution. A spokeswoman declined to comment. Wallace is being represented on the civil suit by the City Counselor’s Office. They also declined comment.
