Judge raises bail for former Center City bouncer accused in death of patron

A former Center City bouncer accused of fatally punching a man outside a nightclub last year was taken back into custody Thursday when a Philadelphia judge raised his bail after he allegedly burglarized a liquor store last month.

After prosecutors moved to revoke bail for the former bouncer, Kenneth Frye, Common Pleas Court Judge Lillian Ransom instead increased Frye’s bail to $500,000, up from $350,000. While awaiting trial for manslaughter, Frye was separately charged in September with burglary and trespassing during widespread unrest and looting across the city.

Frye was initially charged in April 2022 with third-degree murder in the death of Eric Pope, 41. Police said the bouncer punched Pope in the head while escorting him out of Tabu Lounge & Sports Bar on South 12th Street for being intoxicated, knocking Pope unconscious in a scene caught on video. After the punch, Pope’s head hit the ground, police said, and bouncers dragged the man to the sidewalk, leaving him unattended as bystanders gathered. Pope was hospitalized and died from his injuries days later.

» READ MORE: Center City bar bouncer to be charged with third-degree murder for allegedly punching and killing patron

In December 2022, Ransom dismissed the third-degree murder charge against Frye, who is now charged with involuntary manslaughter in Pope’s death. The District Attorney’s Office appealed Ransom’s decision, and the Pennsylvania Superior Court is expected to hear arguments next week.

Frye’s lawyer, Zak Taylor Goldstein, stressed Thursday that his client is presumed innocent until proven guilty in both the manslaughter and burglary cases, and said Frye “does not pose a threat to the community.”

“We are pleased that the court did not revoke bail and order Mr. Frye held until trial as the Commonwealth requested,” Goldstein said, adding that he is hopeful Frye will be able to pay the new bail amount.

Frye’s bail in the manslaughter case was initially set at 10% of $350,000, but that was increased to 10% of $500,000 Thursday — meaning he would need to post $15,000 to be released. His bail on the burglary charges is set at 10% of $20,000.

A spokesperson for the District Attorney’s Office declined to comment Thursday.

Tabu’s owners previously said that Frye was contracted through an outside firm, Mainline Private Security, which had been sued a dozen times since 2020 — often over bouncers’ alleged use of force or failure to summon medical help.

» READ MORE: A man died after a Center City bar bouncer allegedly punched him. The security company has a history of complaints.

Following Pope’s death, Tabu — a mainstay in Philadelphia’s Gayborhood — announced plans to hire its own security manager, and vowed that staff would undergo trainings on de-escalation and education on LGBTQ awareness and sensitivity.

Pope, a former Massachusetts school board member who previously worked with the Washington Health Department, was remembered by his friends and family as “genuine, friendly, and kind-hearted.”