Fort Worth mayor apologizes for raid on gay bar

[Newsjock]

Source: Associated Press

Fort Worth's mayor has apologized for a June raid on a Texas gay bar that sparked claims of brutality and procedure violations.

About 250 people packed City Council chambers Tuesday and another 150 watched on televisions in the hallway or overflow rooms as officials briefly discussed the June 28 raid that left one man hospitalized with a serious head injury.

At one point during Tuesday's meeting, someone in the audience called out for an apology.

Mayor Mike Moncrief then said: "If you want an apology from the mayor of Fort Worth: I am sorry about what happened in Fort Worth." The crowd erupted in applause and stood.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/07/14/national/a203947D51.DTL&tsp=1

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More from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: http://www.star-telegram.com/804/story/1486690.html

Members of the gay community urged City Council members Tuesday to conduct an independent investigation into last month’s incident at the Rainbow Lounge, a gay bar where six people were arrested and one was injured during an inspection by state and Fort Worth police.

"I believe that this Police Department does a good job and that those who wear the uniform try to serve and protect us," said Jon Nelson, a Fort Worth attorney representing the newly formed Fairness Fort Worth. "But that belief does not create an assumption that everything was OK at the Rainbow Lounge."

... Members representing Fairness Fort Worth did not begin speaking before the council until 10:30 p.m. The fact that they were scheduled late in the meeting upset some protesters, seven of whom were ejected.

"Hear us now. Hear us now," five men chanted in a hallway outside City Council chambers, shortly after the council meeting began at 7 p.m.. The men, reportedly members of Queer LiberAction, a Dallas-based gay rights group, were escorted out of the building by city marshals.

[MadMaddie]

1. What happened to the officers? Nothing?

Well then that negates the apology. By not punishing the officers it will happen again.

[sasquatch]

2. Dude prosecutors and judges cannot prosecute cops

It is political suicide if they do.

[Fearless]

3. Yes, so much for the rule of law...

One law for the rulers; one for the ruled. I get it. One more for gays too. It wasn't a straight bar after all.

Sickening and pathetic.

[No Elephants]

5. We should make it political suicide if they don't.

[TankLV]

15. Then WE have to make it political suicide for them NOT to then!!!

[insidejoke]

6. I Don't Think They're Letting Things Blow Over

I think they're still pushing for an honest investigation. I've received several emails from City Counsel Members, most recently this one which was cautious but also had a definite ring of "WTF has the Fort Worth Police Department been getting away with!?"
__________

To: Concerned Citizens
From: Councilman Franklin D. Moss
Date: July 14, 2009
Re: Rainbow Lounge

I would like to concur with my fellow Councilmember’s Joel Burns, Kathleen Hicks, Sal Espino
and Mayor Moncrief in support of a full investigation of the incident that occurred on the morning
of June 28, 2009 at the Rainbow Lounge. I will be out of the city on July 14, 2009 and I assure you
that I am as concerned that all citizens of Fort Worth are treated with respect and dignity regardless
of their race, ethnic origin or sexual orientation.

Chief Halstead is aware of my concerns. I have expressed to Chief Halstead the need for more
training of our officers in handling situations with the citizens of Fort Worth to assure that they are
treated which respect and dignity.

I am pleased that so many people around Fort Worth, Texas and around the country have come
forward to express their concerns about this matter. However, I am just as concerned about several
other situations that have occurred in which African-American citizens have been involved with the
Fort Worth Police Department. In one incident a young man died during an episode while being
taken into custody by the police who was tased by the police. There is a full and on going
investigation to determine if the action taken by the police caused his death. In another situation, a
young African-American man was tased multiple times and arrested by the Fort Worth Police
Department. Also, a young man who was stopped on July 4, 2009 by the Fort Worth Police
Department was treated in a manner that concerned some citizens.

I believe that it is important that our councilmember’s and citizens of Fort Worth support our police
force, but it is as critically important that our officers act in a way that the rights of all citizens are
protected.

I join the Mayor, my fellow Councilmember’s and citizens in requesting a thorough investigation of
the Rainbow Lounge incident and any other case in which the rights of citizens have been violated.
I support the request of a full investigation of other cases in which there are questions about the
rights of citizens that have been violated because of their race, ethnic origin or sexual orientation.



Frank Moss

[No Elephants]

4. Apologies are cheaper than lawsuits. Please do not let this apology, sincere or not, keep you

from suing, folks.

[MicaelS]

7. As someone who's lived in Ft Worth for 20 years

I blame the TABC (Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission) for this, not the FWPD. The FWPD are generally very good cops. The TABC is an organization drunk with power (pun intended) and needs to be abolished.

[ret5hd]

8. Let me ask: Are you a cop?

Legitimate question, i think.

[MicaelS]

9. Nope, absolutely not

And don't have any relatives or friends who are in law enforcement.

[damntexdem]

13. Yeah, the TABC raided a gay bar in Dallas last week -- same basic story.

As for the cops in For What It's Worth, Texas -- I wouldn't know.

[MicaelS]

14. OMG these TABC idiots simply don't learn n/t

[LanternWaste]

16. I've lived in Ft Worth since 1975... and I agree.

For the most part, I've lived in Ft Worth since 1975 (on-again, off-again else wheres, but Ft. Worth always seems to call me back)... and I agree. About the only time I ever received an attitude from FWPD is when I gave the attitude first.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

10. "... injured during an inspection by state and Fort Worth police."

Inspection? Isn't that the jurisdiction of code enforcement officers, and not police?

[No Elephants]

11. It was a raid and conducted jointly by the Texas ABC and the Fort Worth PD.

"The Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission and Fort Worth Police Department are investigating the raid, which was conducted jointly by their agencies."

Was any reason ever ited for the alleged need to raid the place?

Edited to add: Apparently the Fort Worth PD released a statment saying it was a "routine inspection," not a raid.

Since when are routine inspections performed after midnight?

[insidejoke]

12. To Be Honest

It's not uncommon for police to go into bars and ID people they suspect of being under 21. While I don't think it's appropriate for them to do that, I doubt that you could find a law in any state that prohibited it, and I've personally seen this sort of thing conducted in multiple states. (Also, while I've seen that kind of "inspection" in bars, I've never seen police try it places like chain restaurants that have the money to defend themselves.)

I'm NOT saying all this wasn't a pretext to scare a newly opened gay club on Pride Night (because I think it was), but on the surface these sorts of "routine inspections" do happen. The important thing to remember is that this "routine inspections" lead to multiple arrests and the hospitalization of at least one patron (which the police claim happened because "the bad, unarmed gay man touched me"), and that points to this being anything BUT routine.

[Common Sense Party]

17. After midnight is when you find people in bars.

Was this the ONLY tavern that the police inspected that night?