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Jul 1, 2009 9:47 pm US/Central
Man Hurt At Local Gay Bar Has Family's Support
FORT WORTH (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
The gay community came together with candles in a show of support for Chad Gibson, the man injured in the controversial raid at the Rainbow Lounge in Fort Worth last weekend.
Meantime, in another apparent show of support, a state senator and state representative are calling for an independent investigation into the incident.
Kristy Morgan, Gibson's sister was seen at the vigil holding a candle, white rose and picture of her brother. "This is just an amazing show of support and affection for my brother, and it's really overwhelming," she said.
Gibson's father was there to talk to reporters. "This is the actual picture of him taken down," Donald Gibson said. He was holding the picture of Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission officers standing over his son.
Donald Gibson still believes Fort Worth Police Department officers were involved in his son's injury. "This blue uniform between those two people is a Fort Worth cop. I have to assume this other person wearing a plastic glove was another Fort Worth Police Department," he said.
Though the TABC says they did arrest Gibson. Wednesday, in a statement, they said, "Mr. Gibson was released to paramedics for treatment of alcohol poisoning and a head injury and transported to a local hospital."
Gibson's sisters say her brother's alcohol level was .2. ".08 is the legal limit. He was at .2. You have to be at .4 to have true alcohol poisoning and he was not close to that," Morgan said.
The TABC has launched an internal investigation. State Senator Wendy Davis and State Representative Lon Burnam want an investigation, too. In a joint statement they said, "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."
So far, the effort to bring illumination has brought a lot of heat, especially for Fort Worth police. Morgan says they're supposed to protect the public, and they did not protect her brother that night.
The TABC agents involved in the arrests have been placed on daytime desk duty. The TABC is not releasing their names because they've heard there have been threats against the Fort Worth officers whose names were released.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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