Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1970

Benke v. State Liquor Authority

Benke v. State Liquor Authority
Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York · Decided April 6, 1970
34 A.D.2d 645; 311 N.Y.S.2d 57; 1970 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 5182
Benke v. State Liquor Authority

Opinion of the Court

Proceeding pursuant to *646article 78 of the CPLR to review a determination of respondent, dated December 23, 1969, which canceled petitioner’s on-premises liquor license for violation of section ill of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law. Determination modified, on the law, by reducing the penalty of cancellation to a suspension for 60 days. As so modified, determination confirmed, without costs. We find substantial evidence that petitioner committed no prior improprieties and that the managerial agreement was revealed to respondent, so that nothing was done clandestinely. In these circumstances we find that cancellation of petitioner’s license constituted an abuse of discretion by respondent. In our opinion the appropriate penalty is suspension of the license for 60 days. Hopkins, Acting P. J., Munder, Martuscello, Brennan and Benjamin, JJ., concur.

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