HOUSTON - The Harris County District Attorney’s Office has issued a temporary restraining order against Bombshells Restaurant and Bar in southeast Houston in the first step toward trying to close it down for good.
A judge granted the order Wednesday morning, prohibiting the restaurant from selling alcohol and closing it by 9 p.m. for the next 14 days. The temporary order can be extended.
This is the latest establishment targeted by the DA’s vehicular crimes unit to combat drunk drivers and the establishments that overserve them.
Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg calls Bombshells a “crime factory.”
“This is one of the worst offenders in Harris County,” said Sean Teare, chief of the vehicular crimes unit. “Anything that you can think of in the past 3 1/2 years has occurred here.
“We are talking about a person being shot to death in the parking lot. We’re talking about a number of other shootings that have occurred here. Aggravated robbery… aggravated assaults… sexual assaults.”
The DA’s office had been monitoring the Bombshells at the I-45 near Fuqua location for several weeks after investigators noticed several DUIs, assaults and injuries were traced back to the restaurant.
“We have documented well over 100 arrests and that’s not even close to the number of calls that the Houston Police Department has received about this establishment,” Teare explained.
One case includes an HPD officer whose vehicle was struck from behind while on duty. Investigators say the person who injured the officer was intoxicated and had just come from Bombshells.
A second incident links back to the death of Marvin Grant. He died in February after crashing his motorcycle into another vehicle while drunk.
Attorney Mark Weycer represents Grant’s widow who is suing Bombshells for overserving her husband.
According to Weycer, Marvin Grant was served between 15 to 18 drinks over the course of the night.
“They are still grieving,” said Weycer. “It’s still a shock that he’s gone.”
“At some point servers need to recognize that nobody can consume 15 to 18 alcoholic beverages and get up and leave their establishment and operate any vehicle in a safe manner,” Weycer added.
Teare says once the temporary restraining order expires they plan to ask for an extension. The first court date is set for a June 29 evidentiary hearing.
KHOU reached out to RCI Hospitality Holdings, the parent company of Bombshells. They declined to offer a comment at this time.