Abraham Watkins attorney, Lena Laurenzo, obtained a large confidential settlement in a lawsuit against Houston restaurant, El Muelle Seafood, alleging the restaurant overserved alcohol to a patron who then was involved in a devastating car crash.
On May 14, 2016, a man named Edin Palacios was a patron of El Muelle Seafood. Video evidence obtained showed the Palacios was served 12 beers over the course of a few hours. Palacios then got into his Ford F150 truck and began driving while intoxicated. While driving, a Houston Police Department officer attempted to pull Palacios over due to his erratic driving. Palacios decided to flee and a high-speed chase ensued.
At the same time, an 18-year-old girl was riding in her boyfriend’s car after having attended their high school prom. They were heading east through an intersection in north Houston when a Palacios suddenly and without warning ran a red light while fleeing from the police. Palacios violently t-boned the car, causing a severe car crash. The teenage girl succumbed to her injuries at the scene while her boyfriend sustained severe injuries.
A lawsuit was ultimately filed against El Muelle Seafood. After Abraham Watkins was hired, there was an investigation into El Muelle Seafood for its role in serving alcohol to Palacios on the evening of the crash before it occurred. Texas law requires that employees of a bar or restaurant be TABC licensed to serve alcohol. Those employees are also required by law to monitor the service of alcohol to patrons to ensure they will not become obviously intoxicated. Lena Laurenzo was able to obtain a large settlement for both the family of the killed teenage girl as well as for the injured boyfriend.
If you or someone you know has been injured or killed in a drunk driving motor vehicle accident, please do not hesitate to contact an attorney at Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner by calling 713- 222-7211 or toll-free at 1-800-594-4884 to see if you or your family have a claim against the drunk driver as well as any establishment that might be responsible for overserving alcohol under Texas law.