The city of Fort Worth agreed Tuesday to pay $400,000 to a patron at a gay bar who was severely injured in a police raid two years ago, a settlement that avoided a federal civil rights lawsuit. Reports Business week.
Chad Gibson claimed his head injury was caused by excessive force used by Fort Worth police officers and Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission agents during the Rainbow Lounge raid, which sparked numerous protests and rallies in the gay community.
The City Council voted unanimously without discussing the settlement. Mayor Mike Moncrief told reporters afterward that it was not an admission of city liability or wrongdoing by officers, but "an attempt to put this behind us and move forward."
"Our diversity in this city is our strength," he said. "It is not a weakness, and we can't afford to let it become one, nor will we."
Three Fort Worth police officers were suspended after the raid, and two agents and a supervisor with the state's liquor board were fired.
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