A Pigtown bar that Michael B. Mitchell, a former Baltimore councilman and state senator, is connected to is under investigation by the Maryland comptroller's office for failing to pay business taxes and operating for two years without proper licenses.

The Short Stop Bar & Lounge at 1415 Washington Blvd. has not renewed its sales and use tax license since it expired in March 2000, said comptroller's office spokesman Michael Golden. The bar also has failed to pay employee and unemployment taxes since then, he said.

Determining precise ownership of the bar is difficult. But at least four city or state records indicate Michael Mitchell has an active role in its operations.

A violation notice issued to the bar Aug. 28 by the Baltimore Fire Department lists "Mike Mitchell" as the owner.

A handwritten notation on a Dec. 13 city Health Department document about the bar says, "Business is being bought by Michael Mitchell."

Incorporation papers for Savannah Inc., one of the corporate names used by the pub, lists Michael Mitchell as a director.

A business called ALM Inc., owned by Michael Mitchell's wife, Angela, attempted to pay a $1,200 liquor license renewal fee for the bar in April 1998, but the check bounced, city liquor board records show. Corporate records list the company address as Michael Mitchell's home in the 1000 block of W. Lafayette St.

Other city records list Michael Mitchell - who went to prison on federal obstruction of justice charges and theft of $77,417 from a 3-year-old orphan - as a contact person or "business manager" for the bar.

The Short Stop has been cited in recent articles in The Sun about Michael Mitchell's oversight of the financial affairs of his uncle, former Maryland congressman Parren J. Mitchell, 80, who has suffered several strokes and is a patient at the Keswick Multi-Care Center.

Sources have said that Michael Mitchell, 56, used a Parren Mitchell checking account to pay expenses related to the bar.

While Michael Mitchell has had power of attorney over his uncle's financial affairs, Parren Mitchell has fallen deeply into debt. He owes more than $100,000 to Keswick, $25,000 in state and federal taxes, and $16,000 for a car bought in his name without his knowledge.

Michael Mitchell has declined repeated requests by The Sun for an interview, including one yesterday.

WBAL-TV reported last night that Michael Mitchell had voluntarily agreed to give up control of his uncle's finances.

Golden said violating state laws governing sales, use and employee-withholding taxes carries penalties ranging from a $100 fine to a maximum $5,000 fine and five years in prison.

As part of its investigation, the comptroller's office sent agents to the Short Stop in the past week, but the visits produced minimal information because the bar was closed last month for failing to renew its liquor license, he said.

Unless it corrects its tax problems, it will not be able to renew its liquor license, liquor board officials said. In addition, the city liquor board suspended the bar's license indefinitely this week on charges that it served alcohol to a minor April 25.

The bar's liquor license is registered to Bruce D. Bennett, a Southwest Baltimore resident, and the bar is incorporated with the state as CSY Inc. Bennett declined to answer questions for this article.

The property is held by a corporation that is owned by city real estate businessman John D. Hubble, according to city liquor board records. Hubble, too, declined to comment.

Although Michael Mitchell is not listed on the liquor license as an owner of the bar, his name appears several times in records at the city liquor board and other city agencies as an owner and a responsible party.

Mitchell also is a partner in a bail bond business at the bar's address, J & M Statewide Bail Bonds and Insurance Inc. He and Linwood Jahmal Lockett are listed in state records as the directors of the business, which incorporated April 27, 2000.

City liquor laws prohibit convicted felons from owning a liquor license or having an ownership stake in a bar without approval of the liquor board, liquor board officials said.

Jane Schroeder, the board's deputy director, said it can investigate ownership of bars when there is a complaint that the real owners or principals are not listed on a license application. But she said the board often lacks the resources to pursue such investigations.

If an investigation determined that there was a question about a bar's ownership, she said, the board would hold a public hearing for the parties to testify under oath. Failure to accurately report a bar's ownership could cost the operation its license, and the owners could face perjury charges for falsifying a liquor license application.

Residents near the Short Stop, once described as an up-and-coming jazz nightclub, have long complained about the bar because of rowdy late-night parties and fights that have included gunshots. A petition to the liquor board to close the operation failed in 1998, but some neighbors have continued to complain.

In November 1998, the bar manager, Stepney Jerome Jones, was killed in an ambush at his Woodlawn home 90 minutes after he left the bar. Baltimore County police say they have no suspects.

Charles Howe, a member of the Southwest Community Council, said that at meetings over the past month, residents complained that the problems persist despite pleas to the city liquor board. "For several months now, it has been brought up again and again," he said. "The noise and the loud private parties have been a real concern."

Doc Godwin, president of the Hearts of Pigtown Community Association, said he received a complaint from a neighbor as recently as two weeks ago, just before the bar was shut down: "I think that it's quieted down a little bit, but there's still the loud noise ... a lot of loud noise and fighting out in the street."

Schroeder, of the liquor board, said the Short Stop has a highly sought-after license. It allows a bar to operate seven days a week from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m.

In addition, the 47th District, where the Short Stop is located, cannot by state law have any new licenses, Schroeder said.

The Short Stop's license is worth $40,000 to $50,000, she said. "It's the most expansive license you can have. It's a valuable commodity."