Texas apologizes for Fort Worth gay bar raid; city hasn’t

Commissioner Alan Steen, head of the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, has officially apologized for his agency’s role in last month’s raid of Fort Worth’s Rainbow Lounge, done in conjunction with the Fort Worth Police Department.

Steen did not get specific about what TABC rules were violated in the Morning News. However, the sergeant who approved the raid on the TABC side has announced his retirement. Steen did say this:

“If our guys would have followed the damn policy, we wouldn't have even been there,” Steen said. “We have these conversations all the time, and we don’t participate in those kinds of inspections when there's not probable cause or reasonable suspicion or some public safety measure to be inspected.”

More on Steen’s words from his original interview with the Dallas Voice, where he said the raid never should have been approved, that agents should have been dressed in plainclothes for an action like this, and other things.

But, per the Morning News story, the Fort Worth PD and Chief Danny Halstead still don’t get it, and apparently are continuing to lie about what happened.

The Dallas Voice also has coverage of the most recent Fort Worth City Council meeting.