Could Rumors Bar Be Shut Down? It’s A Possible Outcome Pending An Investigation.

2021 was not a good year for Rumors Bar here in Amarillo. The passing of Cindy Jayroe rocked the community pretty hard.

Now, 2022 isn't kicking off the way they'd like it to.

Just before Christmas, a crash killed 5 members of an Amarillo family. The suspect was Larry Rolen, a 55-year-old who was travelling on the wrong side of the road on Loop 335 near Broadway. Investigators have said intoxication of the driver was a possibility.

Fast forward a bit and a lawsuit has been filed against the driver, the person who lent their car to the driver as well as Rumors Bar itself.

The lawsuit against the driver, and honestly the person who lent the car to them, makes perfect sense to me. But why is Rumors listed in the lawsuit you may ask?

It's a law that bars/restaurants MUST stop serving patrons if they appear to be intoxicated. If an establishment proceeds to serve a visibly intoxicated individual, they are subject to all sorts of things. Fines, suspension of their liquor license, temporary closure...and even permanent closure.

Now, with the bar being listed in the lawsuit, TABC has gotten involved. They will be conducting their own investigation and a lot of it will be centered around whether or not Mr. Rolen was overserved while knowingly intoxicated.

I'll say this, some people can be intoxicated without appearing as such. Some are very good at holding themselves together if they've had too many, so it's possible a patron can be overserved simply because they weren't exhibiting signs of intoxication.

Something like that could potentially result in a lighter punishment, especially if they didn't do something drastic after they left the establishment.

However, if an establishment serves them more while they're showing visible signs of intoxication, it can lead to a very stiff penalty for the establishment in question. In this case, if TABC were to find this person was visibly intoxicated and served after that fact, Rumors could find themselves in a serious mess.

Considering the outcome of what happened once the patron left the bar, it could stand as one of those things that could potentially get the bar shut down permanently.

I've never personally been to Rumors, but I know there are a lot of people who truly enjoy the establishment. I know it would be a shot to the community if the bar was shut down permanently, but if TABC were to find out they served a visibly intoxicated person who was then involved in a fatal accident, well the stiffest penalty should be enforced.

Stay tuned for the results of TABC's investigation, it's what will spell out the punishment for Rumors.