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Texas Bars Are Often Under Investigation But The Public Never Hears About It

Open the local section of any newspaper and a fair bit of the content is supplied by local law enforcement. When the police accuse someone of breaking the law, even before they get their day in court, the accused's name appears in the paper for all of the public to see. The idea at work is that we're all safer knowing who the alleged bad guys in our community are.

But there's one group of alleged law breakers whose name rarely appears in the paper. Of course, I'm talking about bars, restaurants, liquor stores and other licensed providers of alcohol. These offenders often break the law by doing things like serving alcohol to children, failing to cut people off once they're dangerously drunk, etc. Yet when these entities are investigated, fined, have their licenses suspended, or are even arrested, it's all a big secret. It happens outside of the public eye and no one knows anything ever occurred.

Well, not any more.

Until now, the guy who gets pulled over and arrested for DUI can be certain that his name will appear in the paper, but the bar that broke the law and over-served him, they get to go about their business as if nothing happened.

Now don't get me wrong, I have no problem with alleged drunk drivers having their name thrown up in a virtual stockade, for all to see. It's my contention that they could use a little company. And using the platform that I have available to me, that's exactly what I intend to do.

The point of this page, therefore, is to name and shame bars who have been investigated for breaking the rules.

What Does It Mean if a Bar's Name Appears on this List?

It's important to note that just because a bar's name appears on this list doesn't mean that they have been found guilty of a crime. Just like when someone's mug shot appears in the newspaper, they still have the benefit of the presumption of innocence, but the mere fact that an investigation or arrest took place is enough to warrant public scrutiny. Here's 3 things I can guarantee about each bar I name.

  1. In order for a bar, restaurant, or liquor store to make my list, there must have been an official TABC investigation into some wrong-doing. I'm not in the business of publishing rumors or innuendo. I only deal in facts.
  2. Information about these investigations is available to the public through a TABC database that anyone can access. It would be nice to think that news organizations, who have access to the same information that I do, would do something with this information, but they haven't.
  3. Everything printed here is a matter of public record, a public record that bars are all too happy to sweep under the rug.

Many of these allegations come from citizens who file reports with the TABC, others from behavior witnessed by TABC agents, and still more are referrals from local law enforcement.

Here are the Bars that Have Been Investigated by the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission:

Texas Law Says Accident Victims Can Sue Bad Bars

If you would like to learn more about Texas "dram shop" law (i.e. liqour liability law / lawsuits against bars who play a role in injurious or fatal accidents), please visit our Texas Dram Shop Law Info Page.

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