Strangers defend NoDa bartender punched in the face by customer

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A bartender in NoDa was punched in the face by a customer over a cheap beer, and luckily, the bar patrons quickly came to her aid.

The victim, Ashely Bacon, said if it wasn't for neighbors coming together, she fears what more her attacker could have done. 

“He said f**k you b***h, and punched me in the face,” Bacon told FOX 46 Charlotte. 

It was an outburst that came out of nowhere during what had been a quiet night at the Dog Bar in NoDa. What set it off? 

“A $2.50 beer, and he decided he didn't want to pay,” Travis Bickford, owner of the Dog Bar said. 

The suspect, Brian Snider, is a habitual offender with a criminal history of hitting women, but no one knew that when he ordered his beer. Bacon was just trying to get him to pay for his tab. 

“It was kind of like he was walking off trying not to pay for it, and I was like hey, don't forget you owe me $2.50,” Bacon said.  

He didn't listen. So another customer chimed in. 

“’Hey man you've got a tab open still,’ and the guy swung on the customer,” Bacon said. “So I came from around the bar and I was like, hey, everything is fine, let’s not, we don't need to do this. It's $2.50 man, just pay it.”

That's when she said Snider clocked her. He and his friend then turned on the other customer. 

“They end up scuffling, they end up rolling around on the ground.” 

She screamed for someone to help. Security guards, patrons and complete strangers came together to take snider and his friend down. 

“The one who actually hit me was pinned to the ground and they were taking care of that, and then I got on the phone and called 911,” Bacon said. 

Bickford said when he arrived at the bar, the floor was covered in blood. 

“I don't want to say it looked like a Tarantino movie but it wasn't far off,” he said.

It's a scene that has never happened at the Dog Bar.

“If I’d been here, there wouldn't be a broke gate. I’d have thrown him over the fence,” Gary "Squirrel" Squires, a regular at the Dog Bar said.

Word already has spread all over social media. And Squirrel has a message, 

“Get his s**t together. You don't hit a female," he said. 

Dog Bar said its reviewing its security procedures and working with other establishments to enhance safety for everyone.