DALLAS — Two Dallas nightclubs are facing a lawsuit. Instead of having a good time on the town, several people are suing — saying their experiences at Club Escapade and Club 2010 on Stemmons Freeway turned into a fight for their lives.
A rape victim; a family of a woman killed in a drunk driving crash; and members of Mothers Against Drunk Driving gathered to speak out about the two Dallas nightspots.
"There is no question there are intoxicated patrons roaming these premises that are out of control," said attorney Les Weisbrod, "They don't put the resources to have enough security to take care of the problem."
The patrons suing the warehouse-sized clubs. They say they don't have enough people working to ensure safety and to monitor underage drinking.
One woman who did not wish to be identified said she and a friend were attacked in the parking lot of Club 2010. "We had some men they had knives to our throats," she said. "They told us to look down and not say anything. They took my keys and purse and jewelry, and told us to give them everything we had."
The young woman said she was later sexually assaulted. "I don't wish this on anybody," she said.
Besides security, the victims allege the clubs don't monitor who is drinking and how much they've had to drink.
They point to the case of Uriel Palacios. He had supposedly been drinking heavily at one of the clubs and later crashed into a young couple, killing them.
Roxana Castelan, a victim services specialist for MADD, said potential patrons should see this as a warning to the community. "There are establishments out there that have no control over the alcohol they serve their patrons," she said.
The victims said they are filing a lawsuit to bring public awareness and to try and get the city to do more to shut the clubs down if they continue to have crime problems.
News 8 asked for a response from the clubs, but they did not return our calls.
Dallas police did say officers are working off-duty at the two clubs, and said they are working closely with the clubs to try and make things safer.
Police said they have actually noticed fewer crimes.
E-mail rlopez@wfaa.com
