Posted on 06/08/2005 2:13:16 PM PDT by jimboster
There's no evidence that a Los Alamos lab whistleblower who was beaten up outside a topless bar had been in a minor accident in the parking lot or had cavorted with dancers at the bar, his lawyer says.
Tommy Hook, 52, suffered a fractured jaw, a back injury and other injuries in the beating early Sunday. He was released Tuesday evening, a hospital spokesman said.
Authorities say they are still investigating whether the beating was deliberate. But Hooks, his wife and lawyer say he was attacked to keep him quiet about his accusations against lab management.
"This individual was telling me I should keep my (expletive) mouth shut," Hook said Tuesday in an interview with CBS News.
Jeanette McCalip, a dancer at the bar, told the Albuquerque Journal on Tuesday that she recognized Hook as the man who got a lap dance from a waitress the night of the beating. She said she saw him later outside the club, lying on the ground.
Robert Rothstein, who is representing Hook, said an investigator was told that Hook didn't interact with any of the club's dancers.
"We've had a private investigator who interviewed the manager, the bartender and two security guards," he said. "All four of them confirmed that Tommy sat at the bar, he was drinking light beer, didn't have any interactions with the girls who were dancing there."
Rothstein said he also heard allegations that the beating stemmed from an altercation in the parking lot and possibly Hook backed his car into someone. But Rothstein said that story hasn't been confirmed and Hook's car was found in a parking space beside the club.
Hook, an auditor and 15-year lab veteran, has a pending lawsuit against the University of California, which manages the Los Alamos lab, alleging whistleblower retaliation. He had been preparing to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Santa Fe Police Deputy Chief Eric Johnson said the beating is under investigation, and officers were trying to determine whether the attack was related to Hook's position at the lab. FBI spokesman Bill Elwell said the agency is conducting a preliminary inquiry, but so far the case is "an attack on a private citizen."
Hook told his wife that he got a call from someone who had information about the lab and wanted to meet at the Santa Fe bar. The caller never showed up, but as Hook was leaving, a group of men pulled him from his car and beat him.
This sounds exactly like the type of injuries one might sustain 'cavorting with the dancers'. /sarcasm
I hate it when 3 guys accidentally beat my ass.
Especially when they accidentally pull you from your car.
I'd quote a line from 'scarface' but I'd get banned.
Would it explain how this guy got a broken jaw from a lap dance? (trying hard to keep a straight face)
Actually, yes it does, if he said the wrong thing to the wrong steroid-using strip-club bouncer.
Sounds to me like a bit of damage control is underway.
Uh huh. Also sounds like there may be something more at stake than meets the eye.
the night my hubby comes home from a topless bar after having had a "lap dance" and gets his face beat in, is the day he better protect his privates as well......
I'm sure that a stripper who takes money to take her clothes off would never take money to lie.
Indeed. And I'm sure the owner and employees of a strip club that might be responsible for the brutal beating of Mr. Hook, would never lie about it to Mr. Hooks' private investigator. Nope -- no way are the interests of both parties served by that.
I'm still wondering how Mr. Hook, in his present condition, has managed to convey such a detailed accounting of his activities....
Lockheed (now running Sandia) and Northup are bidders and could take over from UC-LANL with little problem. Of course, Feinstein, Boxer & Company will fight to the end.
I could just picture me trying to sell that crock to Frau Blau.
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