Two Texas alcohol agents violated
procedures during a raid on a gay bar in Fort Worth, gay weekly
Dallas
Voice reported.
The June 28 inspection on the Rainbow
Lounge that sent one man, Chad Gibson, to the hospital with a severe
head injury has turned into a rallying cry for the gay and lesbian
community in Dallas/Fort Worth.
The inspection paired agents from the
Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) and officers from the Fort
Worth Police Department. A TABC report released Thursday says two
agents and one sergeant acted improperly.
The most damaging findings in the
32-page report include: Agents Christopher Aller and Jason Chapman
failed to get approval for the inspection, failed to report that
Gibson was injured while in the agency's custody, and failed to
report that force was used in his arrest.
The agents' supervisor, Sergeant Terry
Parsons, failed to properly oversee the agents, the report said.
The two agents have been desked, while
Parsons, who was not present during the raid, has taken an early
retirement. Disciplinary actions are pending.
“When you look at the whole totality
of that particular night, nothing went right, nothing went right for
anybody,” TABC Administrator Alan Steen told the paper. “We
can't go back and fix it, but we can move forward and make sure that
all of us learn lessons and do a better job.”
A second use of force report is expect
to be released by the end of the month. The report is expected to
reconcile conflicting accounts on how Gibson sustained his injuries.
Eye-witnesses allege Gibson was injured inside the club when TABC
agents and/or police officers slammed his head against a wall. But a
report issued by the police department says Gibson injured himself
outside of the club when he fell and hit his head.
The police report suggests that the
inspection turned violent because patrons were sexually aggressive
towards officials, allegations patrons have denied. Gibson says he
has no recollection of being arrested or of sexually groping an
agent, as alleged in the police report.
The incident has drawn loud protests
from the gay and lesbian community, which has called the raid “police
harassment.” Six people were arrested for public intoxication
during the inspection.