Family members of a Fort Worth woman killed in a December wreck involving an allegedly intoxicated off-duty Fort Worth police officer filed suit today against the Fort Worth bar at which the officer had been drinking.
At a news conference in Dallas today, the family’s attorney said the family of Sonia Baker decided to sue The Pour House not as a quest for money, but to hold such establishments accountable for over-serving patrons and “placing profits ahead of safety.”
The lawsuit is filed under the state’s Dram Shop Act, which allows those who sell alcohol to an obviously intoxicated person to be held liable for resulting damages.
Read the full story here at the Fort Worth Star Telegram.
The suit, filed in the 236th District Court in Tarrant County, names as defendants The Pour House, an assumed name of Aventura Hospitality, LLC, bar owner Eric Tschetter and Pueri Incorporated, another related business entity.
Jesus Cisneros, 37, was charged last month with intoxication manslaughter in the case and remains free on bond.
An internal investigation by the police department found the narcotics officers had visited three bars on Dec. 10 while still on-duty, drinking up to three beers as part of an unauthorized undercover bar detail, according to Civil Service records obtained by the Star-Telegram last month.
The records stated that after completing the bar detail, Cisneros, then off-duty, drove to the Pour House at 2725 W. Seventh Street, where he met up with other officers at a birthday celebration. There, the records state, Cisneros drank about four more beers and four shots of alcohol.
About 2:25 a.m. the next morning, Cisneros was driving an unmarked city vehicle without authorization when he crashed the Toyota Highlander into Baker’s PT Cruiser as she attempted to turn onto Columbus Trail in front of him.
Baker, who had been driving to a fastfood restaurant to pick up breakfast for her family before heading to work, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Cisneros was taken to a hospital, where blood tests revealed he had a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.17, more than twice the legal limit.
At the time of the collision, Cisneros was driving more than twice the posted speed limit, officials have said. The officer resigned from the department Dec. 21.
If you or a family member has been injured because of the fault of someone else; by negligence, personal injury, slip and fall, car accident, medical malpractice, trucking accident, drunk driving, dangerous and defective drugs, bad product, toxic injury etc then please contact the Dallas Texas Wrongful Death Attorney Dr. Shezad Malik. For a no obligation, free case analysis, please call 214-390-3189 or Contact Me Online.
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