Santa Ana Tavern Loses Its License

State authorities revoked the liquor license of a Santa Ana tavern Thursday, saying bar employees were selling cocaine and that one of the owners hid her involvement in the establishment.

The Half Crown Bar, 1238 E. Edinger Ave., was the target of a sting operation two years ago by Santa Ana police who arrested employees and patrons on suspicion of selling and possessing cocaine, said Carl DeWing, a spokesman for the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.

Authorities said they also learned that one of the bar’s owners, Rumalda Ortiz, hid her involvement and interest in the business. Ortiz had unspecified problems with a liquor license she held in the 1980s and is no longer qualified to hold a license, DeWing said.

An investigation, however, established that Ortiz was the manager of the Half Crown Bar and had invested $35,000 in the business, DeWing said. The state requires that all partners be identified before a license is issued.

Employees at the tavern said the punishment seemed unfair.

“It’s just another injustice in the system,” said Jesse Medina, who has worked at the bar since it opened four years ago. “The incident where they arrested some of the patrons with narcotics had nothing to do with the bar, and now they’re punishing the bar.”