Rock N' Roll...

The story behind the band Lit and their guitarist's bar that was linked to a tragic death. Podcast on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-rock-n-roll-true-stories-podcast/id1876614383 My second YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@RockNRollTrueStories2 Lit gave the late ’90s one of its most recognizable party anthems with “My Own Worst Enemy.” Their platinum album “A Place in the Sun” helped make the Orange County band a staple of alternative rock radio, with songs like “Miserable” and “Zip-Lock” adding to their success. But years after their breakthrough, guitarist Jeremy Popoff became connected to a disturbing controversy that had nothing to do with music. This Rock N’ Roll True Stories documentary examines the death of Kelly Thomas and the disputed connection to Slidebar Rock-N-Roll Kitchen, the Fullerton, California, restaurant and music venue owned by Popoff. What began with a call to police became a fatal encounter, a community controversy, and a legal battle that raised difficult questions about police force, mental illness, homelessness, and accountability. On July 5, 2011, Fullerton police confronted Thomas, a 37-year-old homeless man living with schizophrenia, near the Fullerton Transportation Center. The encounter escalated into a violent struggle involving multiple officers. Thomas was hospitalized and died five days later. Surveillance footage and audio recordings became central evidence in a case that brought widespread attention to Fullerton and generated demands for answers. The controversy surrounding Slidebar focused on what its employee reported before officers arrived. Former security guard Michael Reeves alleged in a lawsuit that a manager knowingly made a false report about Thomas breaking into cars. Popoff and his attorney denied wrongdoing and disputed Reeves’s account. The lawsuit was later settled without a trial establishing those allegations as fact. This video separates those disputed claims from the documented events that followed. It explores the medical testimony about Thomas’s death, the criminal charges brought against three officers, and the acquittals of Manuel Ramos and Jay Cicinelli in January 2014. Charges against Joseph Wolfe were subsequently dismissed. Thomas’s father, Ron Thomas, later reached a $4.9 million civil settlement with the city of Fullerton. Throughout the story, one distinction remains essential: Lit did not carry out the violence, and allegations concerning a business associated with one member should not be treated as proof of responsibility by the entire band. At the same time, Popoff’s ownership of Slidebar explains why his name became part of the public controversy and why protesters directed attention toward the venue. Have a video request or a topic you'd like to see us cover? Comment below or send in your idea: https://bit.ly/3stnXlN CONNECT ON SOCIAL TIKOK:https://www.tiktok.com/@rocknrolltruestory Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rnrtruestories/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RNRTrueStories Twitter: https://twitter.com/rocktruestories Blog: www.rockandrolltruestories.com #lit These videos are for entertainment purposes only. DISCLAIMER https://rockandrolltruestories.com/youtube-disclaimer/