Equality Texas Releases Statement of Senator Wendy Davis and Representative Lon Burnam on Rainbow Lounge Raid

Equality Texas has been working with Fort Worth activists and elected officials, and community, state and national leaders to ensure that a complete, accurate, and honest review takes place of the actions of the Fort Worth Police Department and  the Texas Alcoholic and Beverage Commission before, during and after the Saturday night raid on the Rainbow Lounge in Fort Worth. 

Texas State Senator Wendy Davis and Representative Lon Burnam have met with representatives of the TABC regarding this raid and have prepared a joint statement concerning the raid and that meeting. As a courtesy  to our members and a recognition of the importance of the GLBT community, Senator Davis and Representative Burnam, have asked Equality Texas to release their joint statement to our members prior to its release to the press.

Their joint statement is below:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                

CONTACT: Bernie Scheffler

July 1, 2009                                                                                            512.463.0110

Today State Senator Wendy R. Davis and State Representative Lon Burnam issued the following joint statement.

From: State Senator Wendy Davis and State Representative Lon Burnam

Re: Incident at Rainbow Lounge, 651 Jennings Ave., Fort Worth on June 28, 2009

We want to provide you with an update of our response to concerns raised about the actions taken by City of Fort Worth Police officers and Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission agents on the early morning of June 28, 2009 at the Rainbow Lounge, which is located in the Fort Worth portion of the districts that we represent.  We are deeply concerned about eye witness accounts of the events that occurred that morning and intend to activate all possible investigatory methods to learn the truth about those events.

As part of learning as much information as possible about the incident at issue, we requested a meeting with Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission.  As a consequence of that request, today we met with TABC representatives  Joel Moreno, Chief of Field Operations, and Carolyn Beck, Public Information Officer.  In that meeting, we made a very detailed request for information regarding the factual events that occurred at the Rainbow Lounge on both June 25, 2009, when TABC agents first conducted investigation activity at that location, and on June 28, 2009, when TABC agents returned to that location.  Additionally, we requested detailed information with regard to the TABC agents' compliance or non-compliance with procedures and policies of TABC as those are expressed in the TABC Enforcement Division Policy, Procedures & Forms manual.

It is our hope that through a thorough investigation and analysis of the events that occurred at the Rainbow Lounge, particularly in the early morning hours of June 28, our community and those outside our community who have raised concerns, will be able to get the answers they need to their valid questions.  Most importantly, Chad Gibson and his family, for whom we are deeply concerned, deserve answers.

To that end, we intend to make a written request to TABC for answers to the questions raised in the meeting that we held today.  Tomorrow, we will issue a joint letter detailing that request.

Additionally, in order to assure that we and the community at large receive the answers deserved regarding the events of that morning, it is our hope that an objective, outside investigation be made which would examine internal investigation reports of both the Fort Worth Police Department and the TABC, as well as eye witness accounts.  Through such an independent review, truth will be best assured.  Our community deserves to know whether unacceptable actions were taken at the Rainbow Lounge, and, to the extent they did, that the persons responsible for those actions will be held accountable.

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We appreciate their work and concern on this issue, and we continue to ask for an immediate independent and public investigation of the raid on Rainbow Lounge. 

Continue to Ask City Officials for an Independent Investigation

Background: Late Saturday evening, June 27th, Fort Worth Police Officers and Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) officers entered into the Rainbow Lounge in Fort Worth for an alcoholic beverage code inspection.  What resulted was the arrest of seven (7) patrons, one being critically injured during the raid.

With the raid happening on the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Riot, we are reminded that we need to advocate for the equal treatment of all citizens and this case, we call for an immediate and public investigation into the circumstances surrounding this raid, including the apparent large number of police and TABC officers and paddy wagon.  With one patron currently in ICU as a result of injuries sustained during the raid and arrest, the investigation needs to cover the use of excessive force and whether these injuries were the result of excessive force or were incidental to the arrest.

Paul E. Scott, Executive Director

Senator Wendy Davis (D- Dist. 10 - Tarrant County)

Representative Lon Burnam (D - District 90 - Tarrant County)

YOU make equality happen!

Continue to Ask City Officials for an Independent Investigation

Equality Texas has called on its North Texas members and supporters to contact Mayor Moncrief and the Fort Worth City Council Members to demand an immediate and independent investigation.

If you have not participated, go to www.equalitytexas.org and click on Advocacy Campaigns.

We will continue to update our members. Please visit our website and blog at www.equalitytexas.org.

We thank all of the activists and supporters in North Texas that are on the ground making demanding action! 

Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Chad Gibson and the supporters who will honor him this evening at the Candlelight Vigil at Rainbow Lounge.