- May 21, 2018 |
- Category: DUI and Courtroom Process
In May 2018, Houston police arrested bartender, Natalia Ortiz, at her place of employment, El Muelle Seafood restaurant. The reason — one of the restaurants patrons left the restaurant and drove from the restaurant under the influence of alcohol. The patron then caused an accident with another vehicle, killing one of the occupants. The bartender, Ortiz, reportedly served the patron more than ten beers on the night in question.
Police reports that the patron, Edin Palacios, left the restaurant and committed a traffic violation. When the local police tried to pull him over, Palacios fled from the officer, and in doing so, ran a light causing an accident with another car. One of the occupants of the other car reportedly died on the scene. The second occupant of the other vehicle survived the accident, but sustained significant injuries, including organ damage and a broken pelvis.
The authorities were able to determine that the DUI driver, Edin Palacios, had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.18 percent, well above the legal limit to drive in the state of Texas. While the DUI driver was charged with murder, the bartender was charged with knowingly and intentionally serving alcohol to the DUI driver after he was obviously intoxicated. The charges are classified as a misdemeanor in the state of Texas.
What evidence did the police have against the bartender? Apparently, the restaurant’s surveillance system showed the patron had problems with balance and coordination and had difficulty walking. Yet the server continued feeding him beers. So what happened to Palacios, the driver in the case mentioned above? He was convicted of murder and given a thirty-two year prison sentence.
There were over 3500 DUI-related fatalities in the state of Texas the year this incident occurred. As a result, prosecutors in Texas decided to make a sustained effort to enforce laws prohibiting drinking and driving. However, the authorities also decided to work to prevent bartenders from continuing to serve patrons once they are noticeably intoxicated. “We’re not going after servers or bars that are conducting business legally, we’re going after people whose actions are criminal and negligent,” said Sean Teare, the prosecutor in charge of the Harris County District Attorney’s Vehicular Crimes Division. “When those actions result in the tragedies every day that we deal with on these roads, we’re going to come after them.”
In Ohio, section 4399.18 of the Ohio Revised Code expressly creates liability for bars and restaurants, and their employees, who serve alcohol to people who are noticeably intoxicated and thereafter cause property damage or personal injury to others in committing an offense like drinking and driving. In addition, Ohio Revised Code section 4301.22 makes it illegal for a liquor permit holder, or its employees, to sell alcohol to an intoxicated person. As a result of these types of laws, Ohio restaurant and bar owners would be wise to implement a training program on serving alcohol to patrons. Specifically, they should do everything in their power to prevent their employees from serving alcohol to people who are noticeably impaired and might drink and drive.
