Bouncer beats man with flashlight after denying him entry to Ventura bar, police say

A bouncer was arrested early Sunday after police said he beat a man in the head with a flashlight after refusing him entry into a Ventura bar.

Authorities received several 911 calls reporting a fight in front of the Tavern in the 200 block of Santa Clara Street shortly before 11:30 p.m. Saturday, said Erin Burdine of the Ventura Police Department.

Responding officers found the fight had erupted after the bar’s bouncer denied entry to a 37-year-old man and his friends, she said.

During the altercation, the bouncer choked the man and hit him over the head with a flashlight several times, Burdine said. The 37-year-old was taken to a local hospital. Information on his condition was not immediately available Monday.

Alex Stewart, 24, of Oxnard, was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and booked into the Ventura County jail. He was released Sunday afternoon after posting bond and is due in court Jan. 15 for a hearing, jail records show.