Editor’s note: This story contains descriptions of sexual assault and druggings. One of the reporters who worked on this investigation had a disorienting experience at The Abbey years ago.
Yvette Lopez remembers the barback handing something to the bartender. It’s one of the last clear images she holds from that night. Looking to her right, she saw another barback with a plastic cup and lid.
“He cheers me, and we had the drink, and I don’t remember anything after that,” Lopez recounted in a deposition.
The next thing Lopez recalls is being bent over in an alleyway. According to her police report, she heard a man’s voice telling her, “Don’t throw up.” Then, darkness again.
When Lopez regained consciousness, she was looking up at a stranger, a woman offering comfort. An ambulance was on its way.
The date was November 27, 2011. Lopez and her girlfriend had visited The Abbey – the well-known gay bar in West Hollywood, California. They had argued about a potential move to New Mexico and were briefly separated. Lopez found herself alone at the back of the club when a bartender offered her a complimentary drink. That moment marked the beginning of what she describes as her nightmare.
The police report from that night details Lopez’s disorientation. She couldn’t recall her girlfriend’s last name or phone number, despite their year-long relationship. Two women discovered her in a park adjacent to The Abbey and called for help. The report states, “Lopez was too intoxicated and does not remember how she got to the park from the bar.”
Lopez walked to the back of The Abbey alone, where a bartender offered her a free drink. That’s when Lopez’s nightmare began. (SEPTEMBER DAWN BOTTOMS FOR THE 19TH)
About eighteen months later, on April 3, 2013, Lopez (identified as “Yvette Doe”) and another anonymous woman along with her husband, filed a lawsuit against The Abbey. Each woman sought $10 million in damages. Their lawsuit alleged that, in separate incidents, Abbey employees had served them drinks laced with “rape drugs” and subsequently sexually assaulted them.
This marked the first time Lopez publicly used her real name in connection with the case. The lawsuit she and the anonymous couple initiated remains the only known legal action against The Abbey alleging staff-perpetrated drugging and assault of a patron. In 2014, the lawsuit was amended to include four additional alleged victims. These individuals claimed Abbey employees had also served them drinks containing “rape drugs.” While they consumed the beverages, they were not assaulted, according to court records. The last names of these four individuals were not disclosed in the suit.
Years passed, and Lopez’s case seemed to stall. The West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station made no arrests.
Lopez settled her lawsuit out of court in spring 2015. The details of the settlement were never publicly disclosed, and the agreement prevents her from discussing the terms. In a written statement to The 19th, The Abbey stated it would not comment on specific lawsuits, but emphasized that “settling a lawsuit does not necessarily indicate any wrongdoing.”
For over three decades, The Abbey Food & Bar has been more than just a club. It has served as a community hub, a town square, and a sanctuary for the queer community. Figures like Democratic presidential hopefuls Kamala Harris and Pete Buttigieg, among other politicians, have graced this landmark institution. From its opening in the 1990s, The Abbey became a crucial meeting point for AIDS advocacy groups such as ACT UP, providing a space for organization, education, and activism. When survivors of the Pulse nightclub shooting gathered a year after the tragic 2016 Orlando attack to remember the victims and raise funds, The Abbey hosted their gathering.
Despite its prominent role as a community pillar, numerous individuals describe The Abbey as the setting for some of the most bewildering – and at times, traumatic – nights of their lives.
On August 3, 2021, Los Angeles-based comedian Haely White shared an Instagram post detailing an experience at The Abbey. She recounted ordering a drink and subsequently blacking out.
Haely White posted on her Instagram that she had blacked out after ordering a drink at The Abbey. (SEPTEMBER DAWN BOTTOMS FOR THE 19TH)
“Friday morning I woke up with a busted nose, lip, black eye and felt like I was dying,” White wrote in her now-deleted post. She referenced Yelp, Tripadvisor, and Reddit comments from other patrons alleging drink spiking by bartenders, as well as older news articles about Lopez’s lawsuit. White speculated that a bartender might have drugged her.
White’s post ignited a wave of accusations against the renowned club. In the following days, social media platforms became flooded with allegations from individuals claiming they, too, had been drugged at The Abbey or knew someone who had.
Lopez saw White’s post and scrolled through the mounting accusations on her phone. She felt a mix of devastation and anger that her case had seemingly changed nothing, but also relief in realizing she was not alone.
Over three years, The 19th interviewed more than 70 people who reported experiencing disorientation or loss of consciousness at The Abbey after consuming what they considered to be far less alcohol than their usual limit – some even claiming to have only consumed soda or water.
Some of these patrons provided medical records of hospitalizations, photographs, text messages, videos, or contact information for companions who had assisted them. The 19th reviewed all of this evidence as part of its investigation. Reporters also conducted interviews with Abbey bartenders and other staff members, West Hollywood City Council members, toxicology experts, and law enforcement officials, aiming to present a comprehensive picture of the culture and the allegations surrounding the bar.
Public records indicate that elected officials and law enforcement were aware of drugging allegations at The Abbey as far back as 2016.
Years of Allegations Against The Abbey
The 19th’s investigation uncovered claims of druggings and sexual assault at The Abbey dating back to 2007, continuing as recently as last summer. However, only seven of these claims, including the anonymous woman’s husband, have resulted in lawsuits.
Actress Briana Venskus, known for her roles in “Grace and Frankie” and “The Walking Dead,” shared with The 19th that she had two unsettling experiences at The Abbey and stopped going there a decade ago.
In 2008, Venskus had a single drink and “did not feel good almost immediately after,” she stated.
During an afternoon brunch at The Abbey with her girlfriend and another couple, Venskus felt so sick and disoriented that she asked her girlfriend to take her home. (SEPTEMBER DAWN BOTTOMS FOR THE 19TH)
“The next thing that I came to, I was in the bathroom throwing up,” Venskus recounted. “I wrote off the first time as me just being an idiot.”
It wasn’t until a second incident in 2013 that Venskus reconsidered her self-blame. Older and more established in the city, Venskus went to The Abbey for an afternoon brunch with her girlfriend and another couple.
“We got a drink and I immediately, within … a couple sips, just started to get this really weird sort of vertigo-type feeling,” she described.
Venskus felt so unwell and disoriented that she asked her girlfriend to take her home.
“I’m an adult, I know how to handle my liquor, and that’s just not my reaction,” Venskus asserted.
Venskus never reported either incident to The Abbey or law enforcement. All three individuals who were with Venskus that day corroborated her account in interviews with The 19th. The Abbey stated it had no record of this incident and added, “anyone who believes they are a victim of a crime should report it to the police.”
While few of those interviewed by The 19th reported their incidents to the police, several said they attempted to alert Abbey management to their suspicions of drink spiking.
In July 2021, a cluster of incidents was reported by patrons. On July 3, Amy Valencia said she had four shots at home with friends before going to The Abbey. She arrived at the bar feeling tipsy, “but I wasn’t in a bad place. I was just vibing,” she explained.
When her friends went to the bar to order drinks, Valencia asked for a glass of water. She drank it quickly, but noted it tasted “a little weird.” She began to gag and rushed to the restroom.
“I slowly started to feel dizzy and shaky, and I was slowly losing control of my body,” she said. “I was sweating … and I just completely collapsed on the floor.”
Paramedics were called, and Valencia was transported to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, a hospital less than a mile from The Abbey.
When her friends went up to the bar to order drinks, Amy Valencia asked them to get her a glass of water. She drank it quickly but said it tasted “a little weird.” She began gagging and rushed to the bathroom. (SEPTEMBER DAWN BOTTOMS FOR THE 19TH)
Uninsured and concerned about hospital bills, Valencia declined drug testing in the emergency room, knowing she had not intentionally ingested drugs. Medics instead took her blood alcohol level, which came back as zero – a fact verified by The 19th through documents provided by Valencia. Valencia said her doctor was perplexed.
A month later, after seeing White’s post about suspected drugging at The Abbey, Valencia viewed her own incident in a new light. She called The Abbey to request security footage. She stated she spoke with a manager named Todd Barnes, who informed her that the bar erases security video after two weeks. Barnes did not respond to requests for comment. The Abbey stated it does not share video with anyone other than law enforcement and did not elaborate on its video footage handling protocol.
The night after Valencia’s alleged incident, on July 4, 2021, a woman who asked to be identified only as Julia had a similar experience at The Abbey. Julia had one drink at home and said she felt “completely sober” upon arriving at the bar. She ordered two shots within a short five to ten minute span, drinks she stated she received directly from the bartender.
“And then within, like, 15 minutes [of the second shot], I have no memory of the entire night,” Julia said. “I ended up regaining consciousness at 4:30 in the morning, just covered in vomit.”
Julia woke up in her friend’s bathtub. She had no injuries or signs of assault, but felt certain she had been drugged. That morning, she called The Abbey to report the incident.
“I think I was roofied at your bar, and I’d love to talk to you about it,” she said she told the person who answered the phone. Julia said an employee took her number and promised a callback, but she never heard back from anyone at The Abbey. The Abbey declined to comment on Julia’s allegation.
Indifference or Resistance: Responses from Management and Police
The Abbey maintains that in its 30-plus years of operation, no evidence has ever surfaced suggesting staff members have drugged patrons.
“If we had any evidence that one of our employees or staff had drugged someone, we would terminate them immediately, report it to law enforcement, and stand with the victim by working with law enforcement on any investigation into the crime,” the bar stated in a written response to The 19th.
Despite this assertion, four former employees told The 19th that customers and staff frequently alerted Abbey management to potential druggings at the bar.
The Abbey says there has never been evidence to suggest staff members have drugged patrons, yet four former employees told The 19th that customers and staff alerted Abbey management to possible druggings at the bar on many occasions. (SEPTEMBER DAWN BOTTOMS FOR THE 19TH)
“It was happening,” Alex Mackey, a former bartender and decade-long employee of The Abbey, told The 19th about druggings. “It was happening, and the majority wasn’t happening by the staff.”
In its written statement, The Abbey stated: “If management or security were ever aware of any person, patron or staff spiking a drink, they would be immediately removed from The Abbey, turned in to law enforcement and never allowed back at The Abbey.”
Another former employee recounted fielding calls from concerned customers who believed they had been drugged at the bar. This staffer, who requested anonymity due to a nondisclosure agreement with The Abbey, said management instructed staff to explain that the club served strong drinks.
The Abbey did not address this specific claim from the former employee, but their written statement to The 19th appears to echo this sentiment. It read: “When anyone reports a crime to The Abbey, including suspected druggings, we ask them to file a police report immediately. We are well known for our cocktails. For some people, 1 drink is more than enough. Ultimately, it is up to individuals to know their limits.”
Alleged victims repeatedly stated that their attempts to report to The Abbey, elected officials, or police were met with indifference or resistance. In at least five instances, alleged victims reported going to the police only to be discouraged from filing a report due to lack of concrete evidence like a toxicology report.
In a statement, the captain of the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station, William Moulder, stated: “We take all allegations of sexual assault, and related crimes, very seriously. We are dedicated to helping victims. If anyone has concerns about the service or response from the Sheriff’s Department, they should contact a Sheriff’s Supervisor at the Station (either a Sergeant or Lieutenant) or contact me.”
One individual who described a resistant response was an attorney who visited the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station on August 8, 2021, to report a drugging that occurred a month prior. The attorney requested anonymity to protect her government career.
According to the attorney, she arrived at The Abbey sober with friends on July 4, 2021, the same night as Julia’s reported incident. She had a vodka soda and closely watched her drink, she said. Thirty minutes into her second drink, she became unable to stand, and her boyfriend escorted her from the club. On the way out, she fell, severely scraping her palms, leaving a scar that remained a month later. She was unresponsive on the ride home, and her boyfriend later told her she had involuntarily shifted the car’s gear into manual sport mode. Upon arriving home, she vomited for ten minutes before losing consciousness.
She said it took time to conclude she had likely been drugged, so a month passed before she filed a police report. After being informed of an hours-long wait to file a report due to a high volume of detectives in the field, an officer told her that “‘druggings happen all the time at clubs all across L.A.” and “there was no actual assault.”
“I had to tell him that under the California Penal Code, drugging in itself is a crime,” she said.
Time and time again, alleged victims said their efforts to report to The Abbey, elected officials or police were met with indifference or resistance. (SEPTEMBER DAWN BOTTOMS FOR THE 19TH)
Approximately 20 minutes later, a detective arrived to take her report, she said.
Later, she contacted the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station for an update on her case. A detective informed her that her report had never been officially filed. This detective did not respond to The 19th’s requests for comment.
Edward Ramirez, who served as captain of the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station from 2019 to 2022, said he was unaware of the woman’s case and that department policy mandated documenting all allegations in reports.
“What I do want to say to you, to the public, is if this happens to anybody, I would like to offer my sincerest apologies,” Ramirez told The 19th.
The notion that police advised alleged victims they needed proof of drugging presents a significant problem. Experts explained to The 19th that identifying drugs used in drink spiking can be challenging, if not impossible.
Dr. Sam Torbati, the ER medical director at Cedars-Sinai, the hospital closest to The Abbey, stated at a West Hollywood City Council meeting in January 2022 that Cedars-Sinai does not test for most drugs commonly used in sexual assaults.
“[Patients] want to know what they were poisoned with … and we’re not able to often tell them exactly what’s in their system,” Torbati said. “Medically speaking, most drugs that are used to poison patients … are drugs that the body metabolizes.”
In essence, these drugs tend to be processed out of a patient’s system before testing can be conducted.
According to Dr. Cyrus Rangan, assistant medical director of the California Poison Control System, sedatives like Valium, Ambien, Unisom, and GHB can produce similar effects when ingested, including loss of consciousness or memory. He noted that the effects of sedative drugs like GHB differ significantly from alcohol.
He stated that these drugs are the most likely cause when individuals with alcohol tolerance are suddenly incapacitated by a small amount of alcohol, like one or two drinks.
“In my experience … the ways that it could be something else, where it wasn’t someone who was trying to hurt you, would be if you were already on a medication that is one of those kinds of medications that you strictly cannot take with alcohol,” Rangan explained.
West Hollywood’s Nightlife: A City Soaked in Alcohol
Los Angeles encompasses over 501 square miles. Within it lies the two-square-mile city of West Hollywood, an island city. West Hollywood residents elect their own city council and are not eligible to vote for the L.A. mayor. Law enforcement services are contracted through the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, in partnership with 80 other cities adjacent to L.A., including Beverly Hills.
Despite its small size, West Hollywood has a significant influence on Los Angeles and the nation. Los Angeles Magazine highlighted that after residents elected a majority-gay city council in 1984, it became recognized as the country’s first gay-majority municipality.
Today, the city states that over 40 percent of its 35,000 residents identify as LGBTQ+. “WeHo,” as locals affectionately call it, is the heart of L.A.’s queer nightlife, boasting numerous gay bars, clubs, sex shops, and community services like HIV testing. The city has approximately 58 alcohol outlets per 10,000 residents, nearly four times the rate of Los Angeles County overall. There are over 300 active retail liquor licenses in West Hollywood, according to the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. In 2013 and 2020, the city had the highest “alcohol outlet density” in Los Angeles County, according to an analysis by the county Department of Public Health.
The Abbey is reportedly the most popular of these establishments, according to Ramirez.
The Abbey’s website proudly states it has been voted the best gay bar in the world twice by MTV. In 2017, the club offered a glimpse into its celebrity-filled world with an E! reality TV series, “What Happens at The Abbey,” which followed staff for a seven-episode season.
However, the city’s vibrant nightlife comes at a cost. Among all cities in Los Angeles County, West Hollywood ranked in the highest tier in four out of five categories of alcohol-related harms tracked by the county’s Department of Public Health in 2013. These categories included violent crimes, vehicle crashes, emergency department visits, and deaths. In the department’s 2020 analysis, it remained in the highest tier for violent crimes and deaths.
Los Angeles County provided funding to the public health firm Institute for Public Strategies to study and address alcohol-related crimes and deaths in West Hollywood. The report, presented to the city council in 2017, offered 15 recommendations for steps the city could take to help prevent excessive alcohol consumption.
In a 2021 interview with The 19th, Ramirez stated that he reviewed reported sexual assaults in West Hollywood over the previous three years and found that half of the incidents – 10 out of 20 – had “a nexus to” The Abbey. From 2016 to 2021, 13 of 30 rapes reported to police in West Hollywood that began with allegations of druggings occurred at The Abbey or its adjacent bar, The Chapel, based on data provided to the West Hollywood City Council by the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station.
In six of these cases, victims blacked out and were found in other locations – an unknown vehicle, a motel, on the street, or in an alley. Two awoke in a hospital. One victim was discovered in the bathroom at The Abbey. According to police records, only one case was filed with the district attorney; the others had no results due to insufficient evidence or lack of victim cooperation.
The Abbey declined to comment on this data. Ramirez stated he was not surprised that so many incidents could be linked to The Abbey, given its status as the busiest nightlife venue in the city.
“I base that on the law of averages,” he said.
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Dean Ambrosini, a staffer at the Institute for Public Strategies who worked on the West Hollywood study, described it as a “fight” to get city council members to pay attention to alcohol-related incidents.
“When we first released our report (on the perception of alcohol-related harms in West Hollywood) to the council, it was not particularly well received,” he said.
City Council Member John Heilman stated he had heard numerous reports of druggings not only at The Abbey, but at bars throughout West Hollywood, and would have taken action if he believed the bar was a specific problem. He highlighted the council’s efforts to educate residents about monitoring their drinks and to “not take drinks from strangers.” In 2022, the city launched an initiative to distribute free drink-spiking test strips to businesses and patrons.
John D’Amico, who served on the council from 2011 to 2022, confirmed in an interview with The 19th that he was alerted to sexual assaults at The Abbey. The UCLA Rape Treatment Center contacted him regarding three separate assaults during his tenure, including incidents at The Abbey, he said.
In November 2017, D’Amico shared a tweet to his personal Facebook page. The post warned women about recent druggings at The Abbey. “All my ladies who like to party in WEHO pls be safe @ The Abbey,” it stated. “Yes, Safety first,” D’Amico wrote above his post. “No matter where you are never leave your drink unattended.”
D’Amico said he lacked evidence that incidents at The Abbey were systemic during his time in office. “I have to say that that’s never come to me,” D’Amico stated.
In its written statement, The Abbey asserted it was never informed about these incidents: “Neither John D’Amico nor the UCLA team reached out to us. We would have participated in any investigation by law enforcement by providing them footage, security logs and anything else we could.”
In a written statement, West Hollywood Mayor Sepi Shyne said the city has various programs to support safety at entertainment venues.
“Very importantly, Bystander Intervention Training from the UCLA Health Rape Treatment Center Santa Monica assists our Sheriff’s Deputies in more sensitively responding with a trauma-informed approach,” she said. “We’re continuing to work with our local Sheriff’s, Block by Block Security Ambassadors, and business community to ensure a proactive approach to reducing incidents, and to make sure that victims, when crimes do occur, can safely come forward and are taken seriously when they have allegations.”
A Legal Battle with The Abbey Food & Bar
When Haely White’s Instagram post about her suspicions of being drugged at The Abbey went viral, the bar quickly responded. In an August 6, 2021, post on its Facebook page, it stated, “We can find no evidence that suggests one of our staff members spiked a drink,” and shared screenshots of a conversation with White describing security footage of her leaving her drink unattended. The company referenced past lawsuits against it, characterizing them as “usually a demand for payment.”
“Starting today, we will begin filing our own defamation lawsuits against people who make online claims that are contradicted by our security footage and investigations by law enforcement,” the post announced.
Presented with camera footage of her unattended drink and under threat of a lawsuit, White reached a legal agreement with The Abbey to publicly apologize for blaming staff for her suspected drugging. Online commenters accused White of fabricating the story for attention. Amidst the online confusion, White posted the following day that she was simply unsure of what had happened.
When Haely White’s Instagram post about her suspicions of being drugged at The Abbey went viral, the bar was quick to respond. (SEPTEMBER DAWN BOTTOMS FOR THE 19TH)
“The video footage that I have reviewed does not show the bartender placing anything in my drink,” White wrote. “There is an important additional detail — the footage also shows me collapsing off the seat at a booth not long after having my drink.”
The Abbey responded to this follow-up post by filing a $5 million lawsuit against White, alleging defamation and breach of contract. The suit accused White of violating the settlement agreement to stop accusing Abbey employees of spiking her drink. In November 2021, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Daniel Murphy dismissed the defamation claim, noting that prior news articles and online reviews about the bar reasonably led White to suspect drugging.
However, The Abbey’s breach of contract claim was allowed to proceed because the judge found that White’s apology may have been less prominently posted than her initial accusation. White is appealing and says the case has burdened her with significant legal fees. She alleges that The Abbey has engaged in an intimidation campaign to damage her reputation and financially ruin her, aiming to silence others from speaking out. The Abbey declined to comment on White’s allegation.
Following the lawsuit, over half of the individuals who had agreed to be interviewed for The 19th’s investigation requested that their names or stories be removed, citing fears of legal retaliation from The Abbey.
The Abbey had also released a message exchange with White in which she acknowledged being on a date with a woman at the club, despite being married to a cisgender man.
“It led people to speculate that I was cheating on my husband and that I lied about this to cover my tracks,” White said.
White’s husband was aware of the date, she explained; they were in a non-monogamous relationship. However, she was not ready to publicly come out as queer. She said The Abbey outed her without her consent.
“I was framed as a liar,” White said, “as a ‘straight White bitch coming into our bar,’ and it felt like there was no safe space for me, within that community, within my own former community. I got to a place that was really dangerous. I was suicidal.” The Abbey declined to comment on these statements.
Yvette Lopez followed the controversy surrounding White and recalled her own alleged drugging at The Abbey. Weeks after White’s social media post, a detective contacted Lopez – the first update she had received on her unsolved case in years, she said.
Moulder, the current head of the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station, confirmed that a suspect in Lopez’s case had been identified using DNA evidence, but no arrests have been made.
“The victim stopped cooperating with the investigation,” Moulder stated in an email to The 19th, adding that a person had been identified before White’s incident.
Lopez explained that she stopped working with detectives because the process was retraumatizing. She felt their questions echoed a homophobic and victim-blaming approach she encountered a decade prior. She said investigators seemed to suggest she had invited the rape because a male friend had attempted to kiss her hours earlier, and they questioned whether she was actually a lesbian.
Haely White, Yvette Lopez and Amy Valencia pose for a portrait together in Los Angeles. (SEPTEMBER DAWN BOTTOMS FOR THE 19TH)
Lopez spent years blaming herself for not pursuing her case further, wondering if she could have prevented others from experiencing similar suffering. Dozens of other alleged victims interviewed by The 19th also expressed self-blame.
“We are a business that cares about our customer’s [sic] safety and well-being, unfortunately sometimes we cannot save everyone from bad people or themselves,” The Abbey stated. “It is also just possible that the people you have spoken to may have simply over consumed or mixed drugs and alcohol on their own, both of which can create gaps in memory and might lead to a false narrative.”
In November, The Abbey announced a sale agreement with a new owner, but noted that the management team would remain unchanged.
White continues to receive new stories about The Abbey. Regularly, someone discovers her story online while trying to understand their own negative experience and reaches out to her. Collectively, these claims have created a supportive network, giving voice to shared experiences and making an impact each time another story emerges.
This is what White’s story did for Lopez, and what Lopez now hopes to achieve for others who are afraid to speak out.
Jasmine Mithani, Orion Rummler, Mariel Padilla and Candice Norwood contributed reporting to this piece.
Additional contributors: Abby Johnston, partnerships editor; Annelise McGough, audience editor; Julia B. Chan, editor in chief; Lance Dixon, audience engagement producer; Lydia Chebbine, photo editor; Megan Kearney, digital producer; Rena Li, brand designer
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