Woman, 23, dead after fight in West Toledo bar

1/2/2013

BLADE STAFF

Police responded about 2 a.m. to the incident which occurred at the South Beach Bar & Grill.

A woman was was killed early New Year's Day in the midst of a multi-person fight at a West Toledo bar, police said.

Christina Henderson, 23, died from a stab wound to the neck at South Beach Bar, 2114 West Alexis Rd. Three other people were hurt, police said.

Police responded to the bar shortly before 2 a.m. and found several people fighting. While police officers were separating the fighting patrons, they heard someone yelling that a person had been stabbed in the throat.

Ms. Henderson was found laying on the ground in the rear of the bar's parking lot. She was taken to Mercy St. Vincent Medical Center and pronounced dead at 2:39 a.m.

Toledo police Sgt. Tim Noble said when officers arrived "it was complete and utter chaos."

Several fights were occurring at the same time, he said.

"Most of the witnesses said it was pretty orderly and everyone was having a good time for New Year's before the fight broke out," Sergeant Noble said. "It turned into a riot."

A trail of blood led out of the bar to the rear of the parking lot were a large pool of blood could still be seen early today. A woman who was at the bar during the incident, who identified herself only as Liz, said chairs were being thrown during the melee and there was a large crowd of people fighting. She said she saw a woman bleeding profusely inside the bar.

Another woman was taken to Toledo Hospital with injuries from being trampled. Two other patrons were also hurt - a man with a head injury and a woman who was treated at the scene, police said.