Serrano, his fiancée Brooke Morgan and two friends were walking down Calder Way behind the bar when one friend, Timothy Padalino, stopped in the Rathskeller's parking lot to urinate, according to court documents.

Rathskeller employees saw Padalino urinating and asked the group to leave, and an argument began.

Court documents state that Serrano was pushed to the ground by Christopher Rosengrant and then restrained by Jason Rosengrant.

At some point during the altercation, Serrano began to vomit and choked, becoming unresponsive. He was later pronounced dead at Mount Nittany Medical Center.

Joel Lyons, who works the doors at The Saloon, 101 Hiester St., said he could sense anger and a lack of respect for bar staff in customers immediately after the altercation took place.

"After it happened, I'd be out with some friends from Crowbar or The Saloon, and kids would recognize us on the street and make a joke like, 'Hey, are you gonna kill us tonight?' or something," he said. "I think there was a lot of animosity towards bar staff. People stopped listening to bouncers, because they knew their hands were tied."

Former bouncer Andy Oddo (senior-electrical engineering) said the psychological aspects of being a bouncer contributed to his decision to quit his job, especially after the Serrano incident.

He was working as a bouncer at Café 210 West, 210 W. College Ave., when the altercation occurred last year, and he said it did spark some safety concerns for the bar's staff.

"The training didn't increase, but they told us about what happened and said we had to be more careful, not to jump into fights more readily," he said.

Oddo quit his job several months after the incident partially because he was not satisfied with the money he was making and was also unhappy with the hours he had to put into it. But the added stress of a potentially fatal situation was also a major factor.

"It's kind of a stressful job," he said. "Dealing with drunk people isn't something I really want to have to do. I didn't want to get put into that kind of situation. The longer you work there, the more you have to deal with, and the more it starts to weigh on you."

Lyons agreed that the level of stress a bouncer faces is something customers often overlook.

"A lot of people don't understand until you work at a bar," he said.

Some customers can see the importance of having a bouncer at a bar, however.

Andrew Way (senior-journalism) said he thinks the bar atmosphere requires a system of authority to maintain order.

"In that kind of situation, you have to have bouncers," he said. "When people are drinking, you need order. If you're going to go get drunk in public, you can get sloppy, but you have to be able to control yourself. [Bouncers] are partially there for your own protection."

Jason Caldwell (sophomore-crime, law and justice), a bouncer at Lion's Den, 118 S. Garner St., said his job requires a certain degree of personal restraint.

"Everybody has their own way of dealing with customers," he said. "I've never had to deal with a customer with force. It depends on the bouncer himself. Overall, each bouncer has control over him or herself."

Lyons said he also has had limited experience with customers requiring forceful interaction. His approach to the job was not impacted by the Serrano incident, he said, even though he noticed a change in customers' behavior afterward.

"I had been at Crowbar for two years and I only had one incident, and it occurred right after that incident with Jason [Rosengrant]," he said. "I haven't changed, I was never really very physical."

Lyons said the increase in customer animosity toward staff has died down since the incident.

He said he thinks the reason it had such an impact on the local scene was the fact that students in town had never seen a death at a bar in town before.

This trial could create a new point of reference for bouncers.

Oddo said the fact that this trial could create a legal landmark for this kind of situation, possibly addding another level to the job of being a bouncer, was something he didn't realize before.

"That's one thing you don't think about, the fact that I could get in trouble with the law," he said. "After this, I think you'll have to think about it."

Oddo said he thinks the impact of the trial will rely on the verdict, although patrons should keep in mind that bars in town will most likely take extra measures to protect themselves and their customers either way.

"It might depend on the outcome," he said. "Personally, I went to the Skeller a lot before that and I can't say it has deterred me from going there now. If anything, it feels safer to go there because you know they have to be 10 times more careful. I'd imagine a lot of the bars took extra caution after that."

Caldwell said he thinks that even though the trial's outcome could act as a guide for bouncers in this type of situation, it still ultimately depends on the ability of two people to interact in a safe manner.

"I think it will give an idea of how to handle this kind of situation, to always think twice when dealing with customers and always do what's right," he said. "All you have to do is talk to a customer politely and they have no reason to attack. Be calm and professional about it, because then they have no reason to do anything. They'll just walk out. If you push them, they'll have a reason to push back."

For bar goers, the case has had a profound impact that will not be forgotten even after the trial; for others, the scene hasn't changed. Reactions from bar goers have been mixed, both immediately after the altercation occurred and today.

Luke McComas (senior-crime, law and justice) said he thinks the trial will not bring immediate closure among local bar customers.

He said he believes the severity of the original incident will be a stigma for at least a year or two, regardless of the trial's outcome.

"In this case, somebody died, so I think the damage has been done," he said. "I don't know if the trial will be a big deal. If you were around when it happened, it affected you."

Lesley Borys (senior-psychology) said she patronizes the Rathskeller frequently without any worries, and she is not counting on the trial to change her feelings.

"Every now and then, it will come up, but I don't feel uncomfortable there," she said. "I still go there with everything undecided, so it probably wouldn't have an impact on me."

Ana Melching (senior-advertising and public relations) also has not changed how she feels about the bar scene.

She said she has been able to have a good time at the bars in spite of the incident, and the outcome of the trial would not change her actions.

"When you're out drinking, you don't really think about stuff like that," she said. "I don't think the trial will matter."

But Melching also said the two-sided nature of the trial will keep it from ever reaching total closure.

"People are going to be upset either way, whether it be the victim's family or the Rathskeller itself," she said. "Either way, someone is not going to be happy with the verdict."

• Jury chosen in trial