Columbus city attorneys are asking a judge to officially label M&J Carryout Market a public nuisance, saying the long-troubled Hilltop convenience store has racked up years of code violations, violent incidents, and even illegal gambling. In a civil complaint filed in Franklin County Municipal Court, the city accuses the small market of safety and fire-code problems, repeated underage alcohol sales, and selling expired baby food. The store sits on the 1900 block of Sullivant Avenue, a stretch city officials say has been a chronic hot spot for police runs and building enforcement calls.
Latest move in Sullivant Avenue crackdown
The case is the newest in a string of nuisance actions targeting properties along Sullivant Avenue, where Columbus’ Property Action Team has been leaning on civil lawsuits to force compliance when warnings and voluntary fixes come up short. The office previously went after Rosco’s Market and other retailers on the corridor, according to a Columbus City Attorney release. Officials say nuisance suits are one tool in the kit to deal with persistently unsafe properties that do not clean up their act.
What the complaint says is happening at M&J
The filing lays out a laundry list of alleged problems at M&J Carryout: multiple safety and fire-code violations (including expired baby food on shelves), liquor sales outside the scope of the store’s permit, failed compliance checks involving underage buyers, and a series of reported incidents that include assaults, stabbings, shots fired, and drug activity. The complaint also claims investigators found an illegal gambling machine in the store and that a cashier shorted an undercover detective who used it, allegations detailed by NBC4.
What Columbus is asking the court to do
The civil suit asks the court to declare M&J Carryout a public nuisance and grants the city more than 59 separate requests for judgments and forms of relief. Those could translate into fines, tighter operating rules, mandatory repairs and security measures, or, if the judge agrees the situation is difficult enough, an order temporarily closing the business. In other Sullivant Avenue cases, the City Attorney’s Office and Franklin County officials have negotiated agreements requiring stores to fix fire-code issues, prove where their goods come from, and install security systems, outcomes the city says aim to protect nearby residents while keeping legitimate businesses open, according to a separate Columbus City Attorney release. The M&J case is set for a June 15, 2026, hearing in Franklin County Municipal Court’s Environmental Division.
How nuisance suits work and what comes next
Nuisance cases are civil, not criminal, so they do not send anyone to jail. Instead, they can sharply limit how a business operates or shut it down until the court is satisfied that problems have been fixed. At the June hearing, the owners of M&J Carryout will be able to challenge the city’s claims and offer their own plan to come into compliance. If the judge grants an injunction, the store could be hit with immediate operating restrictions.
Neighbors and nearby shopkeepers have been pressing City Hall for tougher enforcement along Sullivant for years, and officials say the Property Action Team is prepared to keep leaning on civil tools when voluntary cooperation is not cutting it. The June 15 decision will determine whether M&J Carryout keeps operating as usual or faces court-ordered changes in how it does business.
