Dallas Police Raid Bathhouse; Arrest Eleven; Hint More Raids Likely

The Dallas Voice is reporting that at least eleven individuals were arrested Friday, October 8th at The Club-Dallas, when Dallas police raided the gay bathhouse for the first time since 2003, one of nine similar clubs nationwide. Ten patrons were reportedly charged with either public lewdness or indecent exposure, and an employee was charged with interfering with police. Laura Martin, the Dallas Police Department liaison officer to the gay community said that the vice unit of the DPD raided the establishment in response to a complaint, although police would neither confirm the nature nor source of the complaint. Martin told the Dallas Voice that “We’ve don’t operations in the club since the late 70’s. There just hasn’t been in a while because there hasn’t been a complaint. They (the officers) were in there for a legitimate reason, and obviously there was illegal activity going on or that many arrests wouldn’t have been made.” On October 14th, the Club-Dallas released a statement that read in its entirety “The Club-Dallas management is committed to pursuing justice for and defend the rights of each of its members.” Club management reportedly assisted in bond out arrested members, as well as offered them legal representation. Martin hinted that more raids are likely, saying “When somebody complains we have to go in, just like when someone calls 911 we have to go to the call. Now that so much activity was found there, the can probably expect more vice operations there.”