Posted on 05/18/2015 11:19:28 AM PDT by drewh
North Texas-based restaurant chain Twin Peaks Monday revoked the franchise status of the Waco location that became a battleground in a brutal biker gang melee that left nine people dead Sunday, the company said in a statement. Waco Twin Peaks Franchise RevokedWaco Twin Peaks Franchise RevokedA brutal melee among rival motorcycle gangs at a popular Central Texas restaurant left nine bikers dead, 18 injured, 170 arrested and the restaurant littered with bodies, bullet casings, knives, a club and pools of blood, Waco police say. (Published Monday, May 18, 2015)
Waco police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton said Monday the restaurant had been banned from selling liquor for one week, and he hoped the restaurant itself would close for the same period. He was not yet aware the franchise had been revoked, he said early Monday afternoon.
Waco Biker Melee: Bandidos Gang Described as "Baddest of the Bad" The development came one day after the rumble at a meeting of rival biker gangs killed nine, wounded 18 more and left the restaurant littered with bodies, bullet casings, knives, a club and pools of blood.
The Twin Peaks chain revoked the restaurant's franchise agreement after the Waco location failed to comply with police requests not to serve bikers at the event, according to the statement:
We are in the people business and the safety of the employees and guests in our restaurants is priority one. Unfortunately the management team of the franchised restaurant in Waco chose to ignore the warnings and advice from both the police and our company, and did not uphold the high security standards we have in place to ensure everyone is safe at our restaurants. We will not tolerate the actions of this relatively new franchisee and are immediately revoking their franchise agreement. Our sympathies continue to be with the families of those who died and are very thankful no employees, guests, police officers or bystanders were hurt or injured.
Company spokesman Rick Van Warner said the company is "very upset that clearly our standards of safety and security were not upheld in this particular case." Waco Police Provide Update on Biker ShootoutWaco Police Provide Update on Biker ShootoutWaco Police Department spokesman Sgt. Patrick Swanson provides an update on the biker gang shootout that left nine dead and more injured Sunday. (Published Monday, May 18, 2015)
Waco police Sgt. Swanton has said that the restaurant's operators also were aware of the meeting in advance and would not cooperate with authorities. "Apparently the management wanted them here, and so we didn't have any say-so on whether they could be here or not," Swanton said. 9 Dead, Hundreds Charged in Biker Gang Shootout On Sunday, the corporate communications of Twin Peaks released this statement:
"We were shocked by the shootings that took place in the parking lot of our franchised restaurant in Waco and are fully reviewing all the circumstances surrounding it. We are thankful no employees, guests or police were injured in this senseless violence outside the restaurant, and our sympathies are with the families of those killed." - Rick Van Warner, Twin Peaks (Dallas, the corporate franchisor) spokesman
Also on Sunday, Jay Patel, the operator of the Waco restaurant, released the following statement: "We are horrified by the criminal, violent acts that occurred outside of our Waco restaurant today. We share in the community's trauma. Our priority is to provide a safe and enjoyable environment for our customers and employees, and we consider the police our partners in doing so. Our management team has had ongoing and positive communications with the police and we will continue to work with them as we all want to keep violent crime out of our businesses and community. We will continue to cooperate with the police as they investigate this terrible crime.”
In addition to local and state police, agents from the FBI and federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were also at the scene about an hour and a half south of Dallas.
Twin Peaks - is the Log Lady okay?
Sanity prevails. Unimaginable that the franchise owner would have encouraged these gangs to meet in the middle of a conventional shopping mall patronized by families and children.
It’s the seventies again.
Sure, it starts out small with biker drug gang rumbles and dead bikers.
But if this escalates there could be disco.
Wait a second! I thought we had to serve everybody no matter what. And now that are being punished for serving people who ride motorcycles? This is discrimination against the otherly wheeled!
Well, OK.
This action may trigger events that will allow us to see the truth about their ‘co-operation’ with police.
Waco Biker Melee: Bandidos Gang Described as “Baddest of the Bad”
...
So this was non-white violence unless they were all named Zimmerman.
Yeah, if they were refused service, the bikers would have just left peacefully.
I wonder if they jettisoned that particular franchise quickly enough to protect their corporation?
Oh, you are sounding like such a Millenial..... ;-P
Seriously, you are correct. That is the narrative now. People MUST serve ANYONE now, or else.
It must be confusing as heck to be a Liberal. Having to remember who you can discriminate against, and not.
next season...”Sons of Applebees”
Oh my! That’s a whole bunch of NOT GUILTY!
Damned if you do and damned if you don't. If they had complies with the police, the bikers' ire might have been directed at the restaurant and its employees instead of each other.
The Bandidos are not an Hispanic MC. Most of their members are white.
Twin Peaks Corporate is going to be buried in lawsuits from customers from that Waco restaurant for years to come.
Sounds like alot of politics and drama between the bar, the franchise, the police and the local commerce.
It probably goes way back and has a whole lot more to it than what we hear on the news.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.